The Story of the Youngest Elric
by Static-Alchemist-Keiru
Summary: This is the story of Allison Elric, the little sister of Edward and Alphonse. Obviously contains an OC. I'm not the greatest at summaries, but please take a look!
1. Chapter 1

**(A/N)- So this is my first fanfiction and it's an idea I've had for a while. I hope it isn't too bad *sweatdrop***

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My name is Allison Marie Elric. I am the unheard of younger sister of Edward and Alphonse Elric. You probably already know their story, so this is mine.

It was raining outside. I was unaware of what Edward and Alphonse were doing at the time, and I actually didn't really care. I was too busy drowning in my own thoughts, my thoughts about Mom. I was lying in Winry's room, staring at the ceiling. Granny Pinako thought I was asleep, which of course I wasn't. I hadn't been able to sleep since Mom died.

I was nine, mature for my age. I didn't give a damn about Alchemy like Edward and Al. Normal little sisters would butt in to their older brothers' work and try to join them, but I didn't want to learn Alchemy. Edward and Al had their hobbies and I had mine.

I didn't hear Edward's scream. My thoughts were the only thing I was concentrated on, I pushed the outside world away when I was absorbed, 'living inside of my mind' as Granny Pinako called it. I didn't hear the door bang open, I didn't hear Pinako's or Winry's frightened voices. I didn't even twitch. I was too busy thinking, my senses flicked off like a light. But what got me to shoot straight up off the floor was the sound of a foreign voice. It was unusual for there to be an unfamiliar voice here in Resembool, since everybody knew each other here. I was on my feet quickly and I silently crept out of Winry's room.

I followed Pinako's voice, which sounded highly irritated for some reason. I hoped Edward and Pinako hadn't gotten into another "height fight" again. I followed her voice to a door and I pressed my ear against it. That foreign voice was arguing with Pinako, and he sounded full of authority. Who in the world could it be? I opened the door a hair and peeked inside. The first think I saw was a dark haired man in a sopping wet blue uniform. I guess he had come in from the rain. I stared at him for a moment while he argued with Pinako, and then the blue uniform registered in my mind. He was from the military! What would someone from the military be doing here in Resembool? I looked past him to see part of Pinako's face, which was twisted with annoyance. I was too busy studying the scene to hear what the man was saying that upset Pinako, though. I looked past her to see the lower half of a boy's body lying on a bed. There was one full leg and then just a wrapped up stump remaining of the other. I gaped for a moment. I tried to identify the legs, but I couldn't. I'd have to see their face, but wasn't about to barge in at a time like this. Then, the military man turned to leave and I saw a shimmer come from his pocket. There was a chain hanging out and then clasping onto his belt. A pocket watch? But it couldn't be…A State Alchemist? I skittered backwards away from the door, as the man was fast approaching. I didn't want him to catch me eavesdropping. But it was too late. He had already opened the door. He glanced down at me and I froze under his onyx gaze.

"H-Hello," I stammered.

"Hello. And who might you be?" He was looking at me suspiciously now and I gulped.

"I-I'm Allison Elric." I gave him a wide-eyed, innocent look, but it had no affect on him.

"Ah, I see, Edward and Alphonse Elric's littlest sibling. And you might be wondering who I am,

correct?" he said, giving me a questioning glance. I nodded.

"I'm Roy Mustang." He smirked and started towards the door.

"Are you a State Alchemist?" I blurted, and slapped a hand over my mouth. He chuckled and gave a slight nod. Then he opened the front door, stepped out into the rain, and shut it with a soft click.

I stood there for a moment, registering everything that had just occurred. After that, I ran back to Winry's room and shut the door. I fell back against it and closed my eyes, hoping my thought would take me away. But I only had two thoughts to drown in- Why was he here and why do I think he's really handsome?

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I woke up the next morning, confused. I took in my surrounding and finally recognized where I was. I was in Winry's bedroom, on the floor. The memories from last night filled my head and I put a hand over my mouth in thought.

_I should go and ask Granny Pinako what happened,_ I thought. I pushed myself to my feet and noted that Winry was not in her bed. Either she got up early, or she hadn't come to bed at all. I opened Winry's door and found myself walking straight to where I had seen Pinako last night. Once I reached the room, I grabbed the doorknob and just as I opened the door, I heard a voice say, "I want automail."

I thought nothing of it, since this was an automail shop, but once I saw who the voice belonged to…

"Edward?" I cried. I charged from the doorway to his bedside and collapsed on the floor next to him.

"What did you do?" I went to grab his hand but there was nothing there. His arm, it was gone, along with his leg. He was the boy I saw last night, lying in this bed. Tears stung my eyes and I looked away.

"We…We just wanted Mom back," he choked out. He looked past me to glare at the silent Pinako. "And I need automail, so I can fix all of this. So I can become a State Alchemist, like that Mustang guy suggested."

"Oh, Ed, I was hoping you were unconscious when he said suggested such an irrational thing," Pinako spat.

"What do you mean, Edward? What do you mean "so I can fix all of this"? What did you do?" I slammed my fist on his bed in frustration and he looked at me blankly.

"We tried to bring Mom back, using Alchemy," he whispered. His face betrayed no emotion. "And Al…he…" Edward looked away.

"What happened to Al?" I asked through clenched teeth, getting to my feet. I didn't care if he was injured, I would beat it out of him.

"Allison, calm down," said a timid voice. I spun in circles. It was Al's voice.

"Alphonse? Where are you?" My eyes landed on a heaping pile of metal that I recognized as Dad's vintage armor. But wasn't that back at the house? What was it doing…That's when I noticed what used to be empty eyes holes were now occupied by a dark red glow. My stomach dropped.

"Al? Al is that you…in there?" I whispered, approaching the armor. I crouched in front of it and it moved. Al was in there!

"Yes," Al said. The armor creaked as he looked down.

"Well, what are you doing in there?" I took the helmet in my hands and yanked it off. When I saw there was no one inside, I jumped up, screamed, and then fell back to the floor on my bottom. "He's not there!" I gasped. I looked back at Edward who was staring up at the ceiling. "Is this some sort of Alchemy trick? Where is Alphonse?" I demanded. I felt tears pricking in the corner of my eyes again. I glared angrily at my eldest brother.

"I'm here, Allison. My soul is in this armor." I whipped my head around to stare at the empty armor. A red circle on the back of the metal suit caught my eye. I crawled forward to get a closer look. It looked like some form of a transmutation circle. I went to touch it, but Al pushed me away.

"Don't touch it!" Al cried. "If you do, I might be gone for real this time."

"So that thing…What is it? I know it's some type of transmutation circle, but-"

"It's a blood seal. I bound Al's soul to that armor so I would…So he wouldn't…" Ed trail off, choking on the tears that I could hear in his voice.

"So…Al died and you brought his soul back with Alchemy?" I said, standing slowly. I placed Al's helmet back onto his body and he nodded. I clenched my hands. "I see. So this is all caused by Alchemy then?" I stated firmly. I spun on my heels and bound over to Edward's bed. I got right into his emotionless face. "So you tried to bring Mom back and you ended up killing Al and losing your body parts, huh? All because of Alchemy! And what if you didn't have enough strength to make that transmutation circle in that armor? You would've bled to death because Al wouldn't be here and he wouldn't have been able to carry you here! Then I would have been all alone, Edward! Didn't you ever think of that?" I was sobbing now, on my knees by his bed. My whole body was shaking as the hot tears rolled down my cheeks. "All because of stupid Alchemy," I choked. I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up to see Pinako, holding her pipe with the hand that wasn't on my shoulder.

"Come, Allison. We should let the boys rest." I gave a sharp nod and stood. Without another glance, I was out the door. I continued walking until I was out of the Rockbell's household and on my way to my own home, which was free for me to cry in with nobody bothering me since it was empty.

Empty…

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**(A/N) Sorry if it's short. Please review and tell me what you think.**


	2. Chapter 2

I watched Ed recover from the sidelines. I didn't talk to him; I didn't really even look at him. He got his automail and he did the physical therapy. Al did what he could to get used to his new metal body. Everything seemed to go smoothly on their part, but I was still a wreck inside. Al tried to get me to talk to him, but I would turn away. How could they have been so foolish?

One day, when Winry had finally forced me to talk to her, I told her about the nightmares I had. I would be standing in a sea of blood and Ed and Al's lifeless bodies would grab me and pull me under. Then I'd wake up and start crying and wouldn't be able to get back to sleep. Winry just laughed and told me that soon I'd accept it and everything would be okay again. I refuse to talk to her now, too.

I thought things couldn't get any worse. My eldest brother had two automail limbs, Alphonse didn't have a real body…But then things did get worse.

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I was sitting around the table with Winry and Pinako, arguing with them while they tried to get me to eat something. I had my arms crossed and my face turned away from delicious-smelling home-cooked food Granny Pinako had made.

"Quit being so stubborn," Pinako snapped. "Eat your food!" I scowled and squeezed my eyes shut.

"No. I'm not hungry." I heard an irritated sigh.

"So you mean to tell me you haven't been hungry ever since Ed got his automail? What, did you lose your stomach just like Ed lost his leg? Do I need to make you an automail stomach?" Winry growled. I opened my eyes and shot her an angry glare.

"Just be glad I even sat down. I'd rather be at home in my room." I looked out the window, towards my home, when I saw the terrifying sight.

I stood up abruptly, my chair clattering to the floor. I stared in disbelief out the window.

"What? What is it, Allison?" Pinako looked out the window, too, and she gasped. Winry looked, too, and she put a hand to her mouth.

"My house!" I shrieked. "No!" I ran to the door and yanked it open. I raced down the path, tears stinging my eyes, towards the billowing flames that were engulfing my home. What I was planning to do when I reached my house was beyond me, but I had to do something.

But once I reached the house, it was too late. My house was no more, just a pile of ashes and smoldering bits of wood. I collapsed to the ground and sobbed. I punched the ground and cursed loudly. Why? Why was this happening?

"I'm sorry, Allison." My head shot up to see Edward standing next to what used to be a tree, but was now just a towering black crisp.

"_You _did this?" I cried. I shot to my feet and glared at him through my tears. "Why? Why would you-" I choked on a sob and put my face in my hands. My body shook as I fell to my knees again.

"Alphonse and I are going away. I'm going to become a State Alchemist and get our bodies back. I had to burn down the house, so that I'd have no reason to return here." Ed was staring blankly off into the distance. I punched the ground again.

"But what about me, Edward? Did you ever think that maybe I want a home?" I sobbed. "Do you ever think about anyone but yourself?"

"Yes, I think about you and Alphonse. You can live with Winry and Pinako, there's nothing wrong with that. I had to burn down the house, Allison; it's for our own good." Edward walked towards me and held out a hand. His automail hand. I didn't look up at him; I just looked at the burnt grass and watched my tears fall. I heard the sound of metal and looked up to see Al walking towards us. He knelt down next to me and wrapped his metallic arms around me, closing me in a hug. More tears stung my eyes. He wasn't warm anymore; his hug wasn't the same as when he'd hug me to keep me from crying when I was younger. I suddenly felt two more arms around me. One was warm and one was cold. Edward. I leaned against them and sobbed into Edward's metal shoulder.

"Please don't leave," I choked out, my words muffled by oldest brother's red jacket.

"We have to, if we want to get our bodies back to normal," Alphonse insisted.

"I don't want to be alone," I whispered.

"You won't be. You have Winry and Pinako and Den, not to mention all of the other people here in Resembool," Al said.

"I know, Al, but I want my family- my blood family." I was now hugging them, too, trying my best to get my arm around Alphonse while still keeping my other around Ed.

We sat in silence like that for awhile; the only sound was the crackling of the smoldering ashes that used to be our home. When my hysteric sobs had reduced to tiny hiccups, Edward and Alphonse stood and helped me to my feet. I hugged them one last time, and then they walked off.

"Wait! Where are you guys going?" I called.

"The Central Command Center!" Edward called back. Then he was just a tiny speck in the distance and I was alone. I sat on the ground and watched the flames, and once the flames were gone, I lie on my back and fell asleep.

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I jolted awake, my hand at my throat, gasping with tears making wet trails down my cheeks. Stupid nightmares. I stretched and yawned, and then turn on my side to try and go back to sleep. When I felt grass beneath my cheek, I bolted upright and looked around, taking in my surroundings- the charred tree, the singed grass, the still-steaming rubble that used to be a house. It took a moment, but I finally registered where I was and what was happening and how I got outside. I sat up and yawned again. I fixed my eyes on the burned tree and I swore I could see Mom leaning against it, smiling, but then I blinked, and she was gone. It just reminded me of how I was alone now. I rubbed my eyes to keep from crying.

"Allison Marie Elric!" I yelped and scrambled to my feet.

"G-Granny Pinako," I looked down at her and she scowled.

"Why didn't you come back last night? You had us worried." She gripped her pipe with one hand and her other was on her hip.

"I-I don't know. I was tired and…" I trailed off and looked away.

"Where are your brothers? Do they know the house burned down?"

"They were the ones who burned it down...and then they left," I whispered.

"What do you mean 'they left'?"

"They went to the Central Command Center. Edward said he's going to become a State Alchemist."

"That foolish…" Pinako grumbled. I looked at her and apparently there was some look of sadness on my face, for her face softened and she gave me a small smile. "Looks like you're going to be staying with us for a while." I nodded and felt a tear run down my cheek. She turned and started walking back to her home and I followed her, occasionally glancing back at the charred tree, hoping to see Mom. But I didn't.

And so at the age of 9, I had no mother, I had no home, and my brothers were gone. I truly was alone.

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**(A/N) It's kind of short, but reviews encourage me to write longer chapters ^^ **


	3. Chapter 3

**Four Years Later**

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"Allison Marie Elric!"

Her voice struck fear through my thirteen year old body. I scrambled up from my bed and yanked the door open.

"Y-Yes Granny?" I gave her a nervous smile and she just glared up at me.

"What are you still doing in your room? It's beautiful outside." Granny Pinako gave me a stern look and my shoulders slumped. "You should go out and do something. You haven't been out and about since Edward and Alphonse left."

"I know, I know. It's just…I'd rather stay here and help Winry make her automail," I lied. Granny tittered.

"You liar. You haven't ever been interested in automail, let alone gone and helped Winry with it."

"Whatever." I gripped the side of the door and slammed it shut in Pinako's face. I could hear her annoyed sigh through the door, but then she was gone.

I crumpled to the floor and rubbed my eyes. Why did she have to bring up Edward and Al? I hadn't seen them in four years and I'd been doing my best just to forget about them. That's why I stayed locked in my room, so that I wouldn't have to deal with anything that reminded me of them. But there's one thing related to them that I couldn't avoid, couldn't keep my mind off of.

I looked up and fixed my eyes on the book shelf that sat in the corner of the room. There was only one book and it was ripped and tattered. It was an Alchemy book and I had read it cover to cover sixteen times.

Now, why was I learning Alchemy? I didn't know. I just found the book lying in the rubble of my destroyed home and, out of pure curiosity, I read it. And read it and read it. Over and over again, I opened that book and reread it, trying to make sense of it all, but I knew I needed Edward's help. He was more skilled than Alphonse. He wasn't as patient, but he was more skilled.

But who was I kidding? Why would I want to learn Alchemy anyway? It was the reason why Edward had a fake arm and leg and why Alphonse had no body. Yet…I was too curious not to. I crawled across the floor and gingerly picked the book up off my bookshelf. I flipped to the first page and read it slowly and carefully, but I just couldn't wrap my mind around it. Frustrated, I tossed the book back onto one of the shelves and blew air out of my nose. I'd have to wait until Ed got back. But when would that be?

I stood and looked out my open window. I could see the road that Ed and Al took to the train station, the road they took to get out of Resembool to start their journey to return their bodies back to normal. Suddenly, a pebble came soaring through the window and landed on my floor with a loud _plink_. I picked it up, examining it. Then, a rock flew through my window and knocked me upside the head.

"Hey!" I cried, and threw the rocks back out the window and looked down to see… "Edward? What in the world…?"

"Heh heh, sorry about that. I just needed to get your attention." Ed rubbed the back of his neck and shot me an apologetic smile.

"Why don't you just come through the front door? I mean…" That's when it registered that Edward was right there, beneath my window. Edward, my brother whom I hadn't seen for four years. I leapt through the opening and plummeted two stories down to the ground, where I landed right on top of Ed.

"Hey! What was that for?" I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him hard.

"I've missed you, Brother!" I cried. I felt tears pooling in my eyes, but I didn't care.

"I've missed you, too," Ed chuckled and he patted my back with his left arm. I pushed myself off and him and helped him up. That's when I noticed his right jacket sleeve was empty.

"Aw, jeez, what did you do?" I fingered his red sleeve and he laughed nervously.

"That, Sister, is why I came to your window instead of walking through the front door. Winry is going to have a fit when she sees my arm like this, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to need you to kiss-up so she doesn't kill me." He said this with a serious face, but his voice sounded a little frightened. I laughed and patted his shoulder.

"Alright, don't worry. You're little sister is to the rescue." We started to walk around to the front door when I noticed that Al wasn't there. "Hey Ed, where's Alphonse?"

"Oh, uh, he's kind of immobile right now. He's with Major Armstrong, from the military." I gave him a suspicious glance.

"'Immobile', Ed? What have you guys been up to?" But he didn't answer, he just stared straight ahead. I sighed and when we finally reached the front door, I saw Alphonse sitting in a box, being carried by a very large and muscular man. He had one lone blond curl upon his head and a thick blonde mustache. He looked slightly intimidating, but I could somehow tell that he was a really nice man.

"Alphonse!" I cried, running up to the large man who carried my brother. But I wasn't looking at the man, I was looking up at the box that held the suit of armor that my brother was in.

"Allison!" Alphonse replied. If he could smile, I could tell he would be. "How have you been?"

"Fine," I said, trying my best not to show that I was lying. I had been far from _fine. _

"Well, that's good." Al said. He could tell I was lying, just by looking at my eyes. Mom always used to say my eyes would become duller when I lied.

We were now right by the front door. Pinako was smoking her pipe and stroking Den's coarse fur when she saw us. She smiled and called up to Winry, saying words that I couldn't hear.

"Now, what do we have here?" Pinako glanced at the large man, who set down Al. He held out his hand to Pinako.

"Major Alex Louis Armstrong, Ma'am. It is a pleasure to meet you," the man said as pink sparkles danced around his head.

"Likewise," Pinako said, shaking Armstrong's hand. I looked around Pinako, waiting for Winry to come racing through the door to try and tackle Ed. But suddenly, a wrench came soaring through the air and clonked Edward on the head. He fell to the ground and coughed.

"I thought I told you to call before you came to visit!" Winry called from atop the balcony that was connected to her workshop.

"Jesus, Winry, you could have killed me!" was Edward's response as he shot me a look that I couldn't decipher. I shrugged my shoulder and chortled as I opened the door and went back inside.

I went up to my room and quietly shut the door. I'd let Winry do what she had to so that Edward could get his automail fixed, and then I'd let Edward fix Alphonse. After that, I'm sure I'd have enough time to ask Ed about Alchemy. But for now, I'd just lie in my room for a bit longer and try not to think.

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I heard Ed cry out from downstairs. They were probably connecting the nerves. I sighed and pushed myself up from my bed. It had been three long days, where I had just sat in my room and waited. Mr. Armstrong had dragged me out one of those days for about a half hour. He made me sit there and watch him chop wood for Pinako, all the while telling me how that style of wood chapping had been passed down his family for generations. When I had gotten the chance, I ran back to my room and locked the door, even though I knew he could just break it down. But he let me be.

I dragged myself down the stairs and found myself walking into Ed's room, where he was laying on the bed getting his arm and leg reattached. I knew I wasn't allowed in the room when such things were happening, but this was my brother and I felt that I had to be in there.

"Allison, we've told you time and time again-" Winry began.

"I know," I interrupted and sat in the corner to wait for Ed to stop grimacing. I rested my head against the wall and closed my eyes, once again trying to keep my mind silent. I didn't want to think anymore. But I had one thought creep up on me- _What Ed and Al are doing is dangerous. They're probably going to die._

I immediately slapped the thought back. I couldn't be so negative, it was foolish. I squeezed my eyes shut as I heard a painful hiss escape Ed's mouth.

"Alright, just about done now," Winry muttered as she adjusted a few nuts and bolts on Ed's new arm. "And…There! All done!" I heard Ed moving his arm, flexing the metal fingers.

"Ah, feels great. Thanks." I opened my eyes as Edward swung his legs over the side of the bed. He stood, testing his adjusted automail leg. "Now, time to fix Al." As he made his way to the door, he spotted me in the corner. He waved his arm, instructing me to follow him. I stood and followed him into the yard where Al sat, a gaping hole in the side of his armor.

"Holy smokes, Alphonse!" I gasped. "Whatever you guys did, it's insane!" The boys paid me no mind as Edward laid out the scraps of metal that used to be attached to Al's body.

"Alright then, let's do this." Ed clapped his hands and placed them on the front of his armor. There was a bright flash as his body reassembled. I craned my neck to see around Edward. I saw the red circle in the back of Al's armor that kept his soul anchored to this world- to that hunk of metal.

"Good as new, Alphonse!" Edward said cheerfully as Al stood. Alphonse shook out his metal legs and then looked down at Edward as he continued. "And you know what? We haven't sparred in a while and I'm feeling out of shape…" Ed trailed off and his lips twisted into a mischievous grin.

"Shall we?" Alphonse got into a fighting stance and Edward pounced. I sat off to the side and watched my two brothers spar.

"What is this, a brotherly quarrel?" Armstrong said from behind me. I glanced over my shoulder as he flexed, his shirt on the ground beside him. I sighed and decided it would be smart to tell him what was really happening before he jumped between them.

"No, no. They're sparring. They do this a lot." I faced forward as a smile crept across my lips. Alphonse was kicking Edward's butt, like always. "Ed hasn't beat Al once."

"Then maybe I should assist him!" Armstrong cried, and then jumped into the battle. I blew air out my nose and rolled my eyes. I watched as Armstrong charged towards Alphonse. Then, things turned. Alphonse and Edward teamed up against Armstrong and drove him to the ground with an Earth-shaking _crash! _

"Yeah, Al, we did it! We took down the Major!" Ed and Al high-fived and cheered as Major Armstrong picked himself up off the ground. I chuckled and shook my head. I couldn't help but clap as I stood.

"You guys…" I laughed as I approached them. Alphonse chuckled and Edward's face had a satisfied grin placed upon it. I looked at my two brothers and I let out an exhausted sigh. "I need to talk to you, Edward," I said.

"Uh, okay. I'll be back in a minute, Alphonse."

"Okay Brother."

I lead my eldest brother up to my room and shut the door. He made himself comfortable on my bed, reclining against my pillows.

"What's up, Allison?" I swiped the Alchemy book from my bookshelf and dropped it on Ed's stomach. It took him a moment, but he finally figured out what was going on. He lifted his gaze to my face and frowned.

"So you want to learn Alchemy?"

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**(A/N) So this chapter is a bit longer. My other two chapters were around 1,400 and 1,700 words and this one is just over 2,000. If I get some reviews, then maybe I'll reach 3,000 words in the next chapter ;D**


	4. Chapter 4

**(A/N) So here we are, Chapter 4. It took me a while, but I've been super busy (and I'm _still_ super busy). Hope you enjoy :3  
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I cringed at the tone in his voice. He sounded slightly disgusted and confused, but he mostly sounded angry. He glared up at me and pushed the book away from him.

"Y-Yes," I stammered.

"Why? I thought you hated Alchemy," Edward spat. I took a step backwards in surprise. He sprang to his feet and was in my face in a flash. "What is your reason?" His voice was loud and demanding and it made my bottom lip quiver like a little child.

"I…I don't know," I whispered, my voice wavering. It made me angry to listen to myself. I sounded so weak.

"You have to have a reason, Allison!" Edward shouted, shoving me backwards. Why was he so angry?

"I told you, I don't know! I just feel like I should learn, but I just don't understand it! That's why I need your help!" I shouted back. I felt tears on the verge of slipping down my cheeks. I blink hard several times, making sure that they wouldn't fall.

"So you want me to teach you?" Edward asked, closing his eyes. "Damn it. I knew this was going to happen eventually." He shook his head slowly and walked towards me.

"Edward…" I trailed off, not sure what to say. Suddenly, he struck me with his left hand, sending a sharp sting through my cheek. "Hey! You jerk!" I tried to hit him back, but he dodged me and pulled me into a hug.

"You're an idiot, you know that right?" Edward whispered.

"Thanks," I said sarcastically, trying to pull away.

"But tell me, really, why do you want to learn Alchemy? There has to be some reason."

"I guess that I…Um…" I swallowed hard and then told him the truth- a truth that I hadn't even known. "I want to be a State Alchemist." Edward stiffened against me, and then shoved me back into the wall.

"You really are an idiot!" Edward hollered. His automail hand struck my cheek. I shrieked and jumped up, tackling him.

"I'm the idiot? At least I'm not the one who lost limbs trying to bring back Mom!" I pulled my arm back and curled my hand into a fist. I tried to punch him, but he rolled away. He really was angry now. He was giving me a look that I hadn't ever seen before- even when I had destroyed his favorite toy train when we were little.

He lunged at me and I leapt backwards. He took swings at me and I took swings at him, fighting each other in my room. He managed to punch me in the jaw with his right hand, making my head snap backwards. I kicked his legs out from under him and he toppled to the floor. I tried to jump on top of him and pin his arms down, but he jumped up and grabbed my arms. He yanked them behind my back and pulled on them hard. I stifled a scream of pain and tried to shake him off.

"I'm not going to teach you, Allison, if all you want to do is sell your soul to the military." Edward snarled.

"But that's exactly what you did!" I protested, still struggling.

"I know. But I had no other choice if I wanted to get Al back to his real body. You have a choice, Allison, and I'm going to keep you from making the wrong one." Ed yanked hard on my right arm and heard a _pop _as he dislocated my shoulder. I let out a shrill shriek of pain as I crumpled to the ground in tears.

"Quit being such a baby. I go through ten times more pain than that every day. You should feel lucky, especially since I could have done worse," Edward said. He went to my door and opened it. He didn't even look back at me as he walked away.

* * *

"Al, we're leaving." Ed said abruptly as he approached Alphonse in the front yard. "Where's the Major?"

"Wait, what? Why?" Alphonse sputtered.

"We just need to go," Edward insisted.

"Does this have something to do with Allison?" Al asked. Edward stiffened and looked away, telling Al that he was right. "What did she want, Brother?"

"She wanted me to teach her Alchemy so that she could become a State Alchemist." Edward muttered, looking disgusted. "I'm not going to let her put herself at risk like that."

"Did you get angry?" Al asked timidly.

"Not as angry as I could have been. All I did was dislocated her shoulder, no big deal," Edward said with a shrug.

"What? Brother!" Alphonse cried. "Why would you do something like that to our sister?"

"To teach her that she shouldn't be so stupid," Ed stated. Alphonse sighed and shook his head.

"I don't understand you sometimes," Alphonse muttered. "And do we really have to leave right now? I'm pretty sure the last train for the night has already left."

Edward grunted. "We could just walk, you know," he said stubbornly.

"Be logical, Brother. Do you really want to leave on such a bad note?" Edward exhaled hard through his nose and ran his fingers through his bangs in frustration.

"Fine." Ed sighed, "But we leave first thing in the morning."

"Good. Now you should really go apologize to Allison. I bet you really hurt her feelings."

"Heh. And I bet her shoulder hurts like hell, too. I do feel kind of bad, but she deserved it." Edward chuckled and turned towards the house. "Can you believe it, Alphonse? She has a choice of what path to take and she's choosing to take the wrong path. She wants to become a dog, just like me." Ed shook his head and looked over his shoulder at his younger brother. "Why do you think she's being like this?"

Alphonse didn't respond at first, he just stared up at the sky and watched the clouds. After a moment or two, he looked down at his brother and shrugged his metal shoulders. "She needs a purpose, Brother," was all he said.

The two brothers fell silent.

* * *

"Oh my God!" Winry gasped when she found Allison weeping on her bedroom floor, blood covering her face. Winry was frozen at the doorway, not sure what to do. She finally jolted from her dumbstruck position and knelt down next to Allison.

"What happened?" she asked. She brushed blood-caked strands of hair out of Allison's face.

"N-nothing. I was j-just being stupid," Allison choked out, wiping tears from her face with her left hand

"Being stupid how, Allison? You need to tell me why you're all bloody." Winry reached out a touched Allison's right shoulder. Allison yelped and cringed away from Winry's gentle touch.

"Be careful! I dislocated my shoulder," Allison cautioned, tears still running down her face, leaving clean trails through the blood on her face.

"Goodness, Allison! Tell me what happened!" Winry hollered. Dislocated shoulder or not, Winry grabbed Allison off on the floor and hauled her to her feet, ignoring her yelps of pain.

"I-I fell," Allison stammered, rubbing more tears from her eyes.

"Uh huh, sure. What did you fall off of that could dislocate your shoulder and cut up your face?" Winry grabbed Allison's chin in her hands and yanked her head up so that their gazes met. "Don't you lie to me, Allison. What happened?"

That's when Allison broke down. Her knees gave out and she crumpled to the floor, shrieking as her shoulder rammed into the wooden floor. She bawled and covered her eyes with her left hand. Her back shook with every breath she took. Winry once again knelt down next to her, finally realizing that this was serious and that something terrible had happened to her. She touched Allison's side gently.

"Allison…" Winry whispered, her eyes filling with tears now. "Is it really that bad?"

"E-Edward…" was the only word Allison could choke out before another sob overtook her and more tears spilled down her face. "He-He said I was b-being s-stupid and he-he pushed me and so I f-fought back."

Winry sat there, tense and irritated. So Edward did this? To his own sister? He knew she was weak and fragile. He knew she didn't know how to fight and he knew he had the advantage with his automail arm. Fury blazed within her and she stood up slowly.

"Edward is such a moron!" Winry shouted. She kicked a nearby book on the floor in frustration. "How could he hurt his own sister? Why would he?"

"Because I was being stupid!" Allison sobbed, hitting her head against the floor in agony. "I should have known he'd get mad! I should have known!"

"How were you being stupid? What could you have done that would get him so angry?"

"I asked him to teach me Alchemy!" Allison cried, punching the floor with all her might. She let out a heart-wrenching sob and shook harder as she tried to take a breath. That's when the door flew open and hit the wall with a loud bang.

"What in the world is going on?" Pinako hollered, standing as tall as she could in the large doorway. She looked at Winry, who was red in the face with anger, and then at Allison, who lay crumpled on the floor. Her eyes widened and she looked back at Winry questioningly.

"Edward beat her up," Winry said through her teeth, her hands clenched in fists at her sides. "All because she wanted to learn Alchemy."

"Edward did this?" Pinako asked in disbelief. She was still standing in the doorway, shocked. She shook off the shock and took charge. "Well, we can't just stand here. Winry, grab Allison and bring her downstairs. We're going to have to clean those wounds."

"She also has a dislocated shoulder," Winry muttered, scooping Allison up with slight strain. Pinako released a sigh and turned on her heel.

"Well, we'll need to find someone who can take care of that, now, won't we?"

* * *

I was in agonizing pain, both emotionally and physically, when Winry carried me through the house. She propped me up in one of the chairs and I slumped into it. I tried to sit upright and firm, but I was too sore and too tired to actually try hard enough. I felt a wrinkly hand grab my chin and yank my head up. I let a hiss of pain seep through my lips, but Granny ignored it. I felt something cold and rough rub against my cheek. I cracked my eyes open to see Granny washing my face with a medicated rag. When the rag touched a gash on my jaw, I yelped and pulled away from her.

"Hold still," Pinako ordered as she grabbed my chin once again and pulled me forward. She cleaned out my cuts and washed the blood off my face. Once she was finished, my face was stinging from the medication in my open wounds.

"Can I go to bed now?" I whimpered, gingerly touching a cut on my cheek from where Ed had punched me.

"No, not yet, we need to bring you to the doctor so we can pop your shoulder back in place," Granny said as she stood, grabbing her coat from the hook by the door. Winry helped me up, but I pulled away.

"No! It'll hurt!" I whined as I began to retreat towards the stairs. Winry grabbed my right hand and tugged me back, yanking and pulling on my dislocated shoulder. Things went fuzzy as pain shot through my arm and down my back. I cried out and felt my knees give way beneath me.

"Oh my gosh! That was the wrong hand wasn't it! I'm so sorry!" I knew it was Winry talking, but her voice was faint. I closed my eyes and fell unconscious.

* * *

Winry stared at the unconscious Allison and anger flared throughout her body. She spun on her heel, stomped into her workshop, and grabbed up the biggest wrench she could find. Edward was in for it, hurting his little sister like that. Winry barged out of her workshop and made her way to the door.

"Winry, what are you doing?" Pinako asked, helping a now conscious Allison to a chair in the dining room.

"Just giving Edward a taste of his own medicine," Winry growled, and she yanked open the door.

* * *

"Edward, you idiot!" A wrench came soaring though the air and collided with Edward's skull. He collapsed to the ground as blood spurted from his head.

"Brother!" Alphonse cried, kneeling down next to him. "Why'd you do that, Winry?" Alphonse looked at Winry, who was standing in the doorway to the house.

"Because he hurt Allison! We can't get her to go to the doctor to get her shoulder popped back into place and she'll probably need thirty stitches due to all of the cuts on her face!" Winry shouted. She walked from the doorway and approached Ed's body. He groaned and sat up, rubbing the wound on his head. Winry cocked her arm back, wrench in hand, and walloped Edward hard with the base of her wrench. Edward tipped backwards and lay unconscious on the ground.

"Serves you right!" Winry yelled at Edward's still body. She turned on her heel and stomped back into the house, slamming the door behind her. Alphonse worryingly watched over Ed until he woke up, muttering a string of profanities as he rubbed his bruised cranium.

"Are you alright, Brother?" Alphonse asked, helping his brother sit up.

Edward sat for a minute, and then he looked up at Al and exploded, saying, "THAT WOMAN IS CRAZY!"

"Calm down, Brother," Alphonse said, putting a hand on his brother's shoulder. "She's just angry."

"That doesn't mean she can go swinging her wrench at me!"

Alphonse sat there silently and then, in a voice Ed could barely hear, he said, "And just because you're angry means you can dislocated Allison's shoulder."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Edward grumbled, crossing his arms and knowing all too well exactly what it meant.

The boys sat in silence; the only sound was the chirping of the birds in the trees. Edward stared stubbornly into the distance, his back to Alphonse, who was staring in the direction of where their house used to stand. Ed absentmindedly rubbed the lump on his head. Suddenly, Al grabbed his brother off of the ground and flung him over his shoulder.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing, Alphonse?" Edward complained, flailing his arms. His automail hand slammed against Al's metal body and it echoed.

"I'm bringing you inside so you can apologize to Allison. If I just told you to, you wouldn't, so I'm forcing you." Alphonse walked to the front door of the house and flung it open. In the dining room, Allison, Winry, and Pinako sat at the table. Winry and Pinako were trying to force shoes onto a struggling Allison. Alphonse dropped Edward on the ground by the table with a thud.

"Try to be gentler! Jeez!" Edward said as he stood and rubbed his bum. He looked over at Allison, who was whimpering and holding a cloth to her cheek. Pinako finally got the shoes onto Allison's feet and leaned back in her chair.

"You're such a stubborn child," Pinako sighed, massaging her temples. "If you want your shoulder to stop hurting, you're going to have to go see a doctor. Now get your coat and let's go." Pinako stood and went to the door, Winry following. Allison stood slowly, trying not to jostle her sore shoulder. When she spotted Edward, she looked away, trying to hide her tears. She dropped the cloth that she held to her cheek onto the counter. The gash that cloth has covered was puckered and red. Alphonse glanced down at his brother and shook his head, knowing that he had cut her cheek.

"Edward, don't you have anything to say?" Alphonse hissed. Allison approached Edward, but looked at Alphonse.

"He doesn't have to apologize. It's my fault," Allison whispered, her voice thick with tears. She hesitantly reached out with her left arm and pulled Edward into an awkward, one-armed hug, resting her uninjured cheek on Ed's shoulder. She pulled away and smiled her typical crooked smile. It was weak and fake, but she was trying. She brushed past Edward, who was frozen in place with a blank expression, and swiped her coat from the hook. She joined Winry and Pinako at the door and then looked at both Edward and Alphonse.

"Now if you'd excuse me, I have to go get my shoulder put back in its socket." Then they swept out the doorway and set off towards the doctor's.

* * *

"Why didn't you say anything?" Alphonse asked late that night. Pinako, Winry, and Allison still weren't back from doctors and Edward was sprawled across his bed, Alphonse sitting in the corner nearby.

"You heard her, there was no need for an apology," Edward responded, stifling a yawn.

"Brother, you dislocated her shoulder. Not to mention you cut and bruised her face."

"Well, if she was a better fighter, maybe she would have stood a better chance against me."

"You should teach her Alchemy."

The room fell silent. Edward flung his arm over his eyes silently shook his head. He wasn't going to teach anyone Alchemy, especially his sister. Secretly, he was very protective of her, like a father. He didn't want her to go into the military, become a State Alchemist, and become a human weapon in war. War. He couldn't see his little sister in war, having to kill innocent people. He let out a pent-up sigh and decided to respond.

"No. I'm not going to teach her Alchemy if her only reason is to become a State Alchemist. If her reason was to help Pinako and Winry and other people here in Resembool, then sure, I'd teach her in a heartbeat, but her reasons are foolish and stupid."

"Maybe she'll go to Teacher, then," Alphonse said quietly.

"Maybe, but I doubt Teacher will accept her if all she's going to do with what she teaches Allison is use it in the military," Edward replied. He sighed and turned on his side to look at his brother. "You really think I should teach her?"

"Yes. But maybe just the basics, since she's smart enough to continue form there by herself."

The room was cloaked in silence yet again, Edward absorbed in his thoughts. Soon, he stretched, sighed, and swung his legs off the side of the bed. He sat on the edge of the bed, a small grin on his face.

"Well, alright then. I'll give Allison the same lesson Teacher gave us."

"Are we really going to send her to a deserted island, though?" Alphonse asked, worried. Edward chuckled and shook his head.

"She has enough trouble surviving here as it is. But right when we're about to hop aboard the train, I'll say the same thing Teacher said." Alphonse and Edward look at each other and then they both said the same thing at the same time-

"One is All, All is One."

* * *

**(A/N) 3,000+ words, even though I didn't get any new reviews. I'm aiming for 5,000-6,000 next time, but we'll see, since I need reviews to keep me going! ;D**


	5. Chapter 5

**Holy cow! It's been _forever_ since I've updated this thing! Sorry to anyone who's been waiting! There's this thing called life and it keeps getting in my way XD**

* * *

"Ouch! Stop it!" I cried, trying to pull myself away from the doctor tending to my dislocated shoulder. I felt a hand on the top of my head, holding me in place. I looked over to see Winry, giving me a stern look that told me to sit still. I slumped and grumbled unintelligibly.

"We're sorry about coming at such a late hour, Doctor," Pinako said, reclining in a puffy chair in the corner. She brought her pipe to her lips and took a long draw.

"Oh, it's no problem, really," the doctor said, touching my shoulder. I cringed and tried to pull get away from him, but Winry was still holding me in place. "It isn't your fault, I suppose. Now, do you mind telling me why your shoulder is like this?" The doctor looked at me as I sulked on the patient bed.

"I was being stupid and I fell," I said bluntly, my eyes not meeting his. I shifted on the bed so that I was angled towards Winry. "Just pop it back into place so I can go home."

"Dear, you have to be more specific than just saying that you fell," he explained. I sighed and shook my head.

"Just do it already! I don't feel like sitting here like this." I was getting annoyed now. We'd been sitting here for an hour or so with him just poking and prodding my shoulder and asking stupid questions. Why didn't he just pop my shoulder back in its socket and get it over with instead of dragging it out longer and longer?

"Her brother hurt her," Winry stated, still holding me firmly in place. "He got angry with her and he's known to be a bit…violent."

"I see…so does that mean you weren't telling me the truth, young lady?" the doctor asked, raising a brow. I huffed and stared angrily at the floor. "Hm. I'll take that as a yes. Anyway, now that I know how this happened, I guess I'll just…"

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot from my shoulder and throughout my body. I tried my best to stifle my shriek as things got a bit fuzzy around the edges. I felt myself tilt backwards and slump against the wall the patient bed was next to. I heard the doctor exchange a few quick words with Pinako, but I didn't quite catch everything that was said. Then, Winry was grabbing my left arm and pulling me up off the bed and hauling me through the door into the cold evening air.

"Hey…" I grumbled as Winry dragged me along the dirt road that led away from the doctor's house. I heard Pinako walking behind us, her small feet making sharp, staccato footsteps on the stones and dirt. I swung my right arm up and pulled Winry's hand off of my left bicep. That's when I noticed that I could move my arm and that I didn't scream in pain while doing so. I flexed my fingers and smiled, then twirled around to continue walking.

"I see your arm feels better," Pinako chuckled from behind. I glanced briefly over my shoulder to nod. I walked ahead of Winry and Granny, trying to get home as quick as possible. It was getting dark and I could sense a storm rolling in. I hated it when it rained at night. I'm pretty sure it has to do with the fact that it was storming the night Ed and Al attempted human transmutation, but I just ignore that.

"Allison, slow down," Pinako called after me. I shook my head, sending my brown hair flying in all directions. I raked my hands through the tangles, knowing that I should try brushing my hair sometime soon.

"It's about to rain," I called back over my shoulder. "I don't want to get caught in it." I picked up the pace when I heard thunder rumble treacherously in the distance. I heard Granny sigh, but not walk any faster. Winry stayed back with her, so I was ahead by myself, the big gap between us growing bigger as I increased my speed with every clap of thunder.

When the first drop of rain hit me, I was in a full out run. I was breathing hard and my right shoulder began to ache slightly. I guess it wasn't very smart to do any physical activity right after having my shoulder put back in place.

_I hate rain. I hate rain. I hate it, hate it, _hate _it, _I thought as it began to downpour. My soggy, ratty hair began to fall into my eyes, so I was constantly tucking it behind my ears, trying to keep my vision clear as I raced down the field-lined roads. Lightning lit up the sky and, startled, I shrieked and came to an abrupt halt. I stuck my thumbs in my ears and used the rest of my hands to cover my eyes. I could no longer hear the thunder or see the lightning, but I was stuck with visions flashing through my mind. Roy Mustang in the entryway, the nameless boy laying on the patient bed, who turned out to be Ed, Alphonse's soul in the suit of armor, my house burning bright with orange flames, my brothers walking off, leaving me alone for four years. I trembled, but not from the chill of the rain. These were memories I tended to avoid. Now they were all flooding my brain due to a simple thunderstorm. I peeked through my fingers only to be met with another bright flash of lightning. I felt another scream scrape out of my throat and end in a pitiful whimper. I started running again, removing my hands from my head and sprinting faster than I ever had before. When Granny's house came into view, a wave of relief so strong washed over me that I almost tripped and stumbled to me knees.

The rain was relentless- and now wind was adding to the storm. It was blowing against me, trying to force me back, away from my safe haven. With every crack of thunder, I cringed. With every flash of lightning, I would release a startled cry. Lightning. Lightning was the worst. It always seemed to scare the life out of me, even if I was prepared for it.

By the time I reached Granny's house, my legs were on fire and I could barely breathe. I flung myself through the small wooden doorway and slammed the door shut. I huddled next to the doorway for a minute, trying desperately to regain my composure. But before I could do so, my brothers and Major Armstrong were in the front room, franticly asking me what was wrong.

"I'm fine!" I reassured at least fifty times. "Granny and Winry are right behind me, I just ran ahead to try and avoid the storm."

After a few minutes of persuasion from Edward, the Major went back to his guest room, leaving the three of us alone. Edward was giving me a stern but worried look. He was obviously still mad at me, but he was also concerned about my odd condition. I couldn't exactly tell was Al's emotions were, but I was sure he was worried, because that's what Alphonse does- worry.

"So, are you gonna tell us what's wrong?" Edward asked, crossing his arms over his chest. He was shirtless and in a pair of his boxers. He had clearly been sleeping when I had made my noisy return.

"Nothing that you should be concerned about," I muttered, shakily standing and shedding my coat. I hung it on the coat rack and made my way to the kitchen to make myself a cup of hot tea. "Go back to bed, you need your sleep."

"Allison, you should have seen your face when we found you huddled in the corner by the door. You looked terrified. What happened?" Alphonse asked gently, approached from behind me. He noticed me struggling to reach the teapot on the top shelf of a cabinet and grabbed it for me.

"Thanks," I said, taking the metal pot from him. As I filled it with water, I was silent. My brothers didn't know- heck, nobody knew- that I was petrified by thunderstorms. I had always stifled my cries with my blankets and pillows, so no one had ever heard me, let alone seen me in such a state. I turned off the water and took the pot over to the stove to let the water boil. By the time I had turned around to face my brothers, Edward looked like he was about to explode with impatience.

"I was scared," I whispered, so quiet that it was barely audible.

"Scared of what? Were you scared because you were too far ahead of Winry and Pinako and you were alone?" Alphonse asked.

"No," I replied quietly. I definitely wasn't scared of being alone, at least, not anymore. I'd gotten so used to being by myself that I barely even noticed. "It-It was-"

"It was the storm, wasn't it?" Edward asked. He didn't look impatient or annoyed anymore. He actually looked…sympathetic? I had no idea, since I had never seen a look so…calm on my eldest brother's face. "You were afraid of the thunder and lightning." This time, it wasn't a question, it was a statement.

"…Yeah," I whispered. I held back tears, ashamed that Edward could see through me so easily. I was weak and childish. I would never be as strong as Ed.

"Why?" Alphonse asked, obviously unable to read me as well as Ed could. Lightning suddenly lit up the dim inside of the house (we had neglected to turn on any lights), and I yelped, my knees nearly giving out from fear. Shortly after, thunder shook the house and I promptly fell to the floor and curled against the counter next to me.

"It just reminds me," I said, my voice shaking, "of the night you guys tried to bring Mom back. Of the night everything changed…"

"Allison…" Alphonse trailed off. He attempted to try and comfort me, but I pushed him away.

"Go away, please. Just…go to bed." I grabbed the edge of the counter and hauled myself to my feet. As soon as I was standing steadily, the teapot whistled, signaling that the tea was ready. I swiped the pot off of the stove and poured the liquid into a glass that was waiting on the table nearby.

"We're not just going to let you sit down here in a storm if you're afraid," Edward said simply, striding up to me and hopping up onto the counter. He sat there and shrugged. "Plus, Winry and Pinako aren't home yet, and I would like to make sure they get home alright." Ed took the teapot from me, grabbed a mug from a shelf above his head, and poured the liquid into it. He set the pot on the counter next to me and took a quick sip from his mug.

"I never thought you were a tea person, Ed," I said lightheartedly as I sipped from my own glass.

"I'm not," he grumbled as he turned and spit the tea into the sink to the right of him. "But I'm thirsty and you aren't going to be able to drink this whole pot by yourself."

"I'll be able to if this storm lasts long enough," I replied, leaning back against the counter.

"So, you shoulder's better?" Alphonse asked from across the room where he was examining a bulletin board covered in pictures of himself, Edward, me, Winry, her parents, and our parents. There were a few scattered pictures of Pinako and my father from back in the day, but they were growing scarce. They were the first ones to be tossed when Granny ran out of room and had to put up a new picture.

"Yup," I replied, instantly reaching up and rubbing my right shoulder. It was a little sore, but not as bad as it was when I'd been sprinting home from the Risembool doctor's office.

"Did it hurt?" Alphonse was prodding a small portrait near the top of the board. I looked at those photos so many times that I knew exactly which one it was- Edward was striking an 'I'm number one!' pose and Al was posing next to him, jokingly holding up two fingers to signify 'I'm number two!'. Winry was in the background, her hands on her hips, slightly peeved that the boys weren't doing something Winry had asked them to do. And, right between the two boys stood a tiny brunette girl who only came up to her boys' waists. She was looking up curiously at Edward and timidly holding out three fingers. That was one of my favorite pictures.

"Of course," I said matter-of-factly. "I thought I was going to pass out again when that doctor finally popped my shoulder back into its socket." I took a big drink of my tea and burned the back of my throat. I coughed and shoved my tea away from me to let it cool a little longer.

"Do you think Granny would mind if I took this picture?" Alphonse asked, plucking my favorite portrait from the bulletin board.

"Why don't you ask her yourself?" said a voice from the doorway. Ed dropped his tea and Al dropped the picture as we all darted to the entryway. Standing there, sopping wet, was Pinako and Winry. They were shrugging off their coats and kicking off their shoes as they entered. After they hung their coats and placed their shoes by a heater to dry, Winry and Pinako went to the kitchen and poured themselves some of my tea.

"You could have waited for us, Allison," Winry huffed as she sank into a chair by the dining table. There was a loud bang from upstairs and, suddenly, Armstrong was charging downstairs.

"Is everyone alright?" the large man asked. "Everyone's here safely?"

"Yes, major," Edward said, pouring himself another cup of tea since his other cup had been spilled on the floor.

"Would you like some tea?" Pinako offered from the opposite side of the room where she was leaning against the wall. "Allison made a pot and there's well enough for all of us."

"Why, of course," Armstrong said as pink sparkles materialized around his head. "The tradition of drinking tea at this time of night has been passed down the Armstrong family for-"

"Just drink your tea," Edward muttered, irritated, as he jammed a mug of the liquid into the man's chest.

"As I was saying," Winry continued. "You could have waited for us. You practically ran all the way home."

"I _did_ run all the way home," I said, sipping my now slightly cooled tea. "I didn't want to get caught in a storm like that." Edward glanced over at me as he leaned over the sink to spit out a mouthful of tea. He was waiting. Waiting for me to tell Winry and Pinako the real reason why I ran. I looked down and stared into my cup.

The room was silent except for the annoying sound of Armstrong slurping his tea. After about ten minutes of silence, Alphonse picked up the picture he had dropped earlier and held it in front of Granny.

"Do you think I could have this picture? It's one of the only ones with me, Allison, and Ed."

"Sure," Granny replied as she brought her mug of tea to her lips. Alphonse walked over to Ed and handed it to him, since Al had nowhere appropriate to keep the portrait. Silence blanketed the room once more until I tossed my empty cup into the sink and run towards the stairs. But before I could reach them, Edward grabbed my shoulder and gave me a stern look. He wanted me to tell Winry and Granny that I was afraid of storms. If I didn't, he'd tell them himself. I shook my head firmly; there was no need for them to know. I was a hand-full already and piling a foolish fear on top of everything else would just make it worse. Apparently, Edward saw in my eyes that it was useless to try and persuade me, so he released my shoulder and gave me a light push towards the stairs.

At the top of the staircase, I could hear Winry begin to speak. I froze and listened.

"Ed…what's going on with Allison? When she ran…it wasn't a 'gotta get home before it rains' run. It looked as if she thought something was about to kill her."

"She's…scared," I heard Edward reply. I almost charged down the stairs to punch him, but I kept myself planted at the top of the staircase. "She doesn't like storms. They frighten her. When she got home, she cowered in the corner by the door for about fifteen minutes."

"She's afraid of storms?" Pinako asked. I could hear her setting down her tea mug.

"Yeah, apparently it reminds her of the night Al and I tried to bring Mom back. Even though she had no idea what was going on that night, it still changed her life afterwards." There was a deep rumble of thunder from outside. The storm had subsided when Winry and Pinako had arrived home, but I guess it wasn't over yet. I cringed against the hand rail as rain began to pelt the window nearby.

"So all those nights that there were thunderstorms…Allison's been sitting in her room, alone, scared out of her mind?" Winry asked so quietly that I could barely hear.

"I think so," I heard Alphonse say. "I don't think I've ever seen someone so petrified. I'm surprised you guys never found out about this. You think you'd notice someone who shrieked every time lightning flashed." As if waiting for Alphonse's cue, lightning lit up the night. I slapped a hand over my mouth to stifle my cry as I stumbled backwards towards my room. I tripped over a loose floorboard and went sprawling to the floor with a loud thud.

"Allison Elric!" a loud voice boomed. A shadow fell over me and I glanced up, pain pulsing from a bruise that was forming where I had hit my head on the floor. It was Armstrong, who had somehow managed to bolt up the stairs quicker than everyone else. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine Mr. Armstrong," I muttered as I tried to pick myself up off the floor.

"Nonsense!" he crowed as he scooped me up and flung me over one of his shoulders. "Come! You must rest!" I was then carried to my bedroom, where I was dropped roughly on my bed. I glanced around Armstrong, who was looming over me, and saw Ed, Al, and Winry gathered in the doorway. It seemed as if Pinako had stayed downstairs to clean up the tea.

"You alright?" Alphonse asked as he entered, Winry following close behind. Edward stayed in the doorway, staring blankly at a book that was lying on the floor.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Now tell the major that." Major Armstrong was now standing shirtless in front of me, flexing and posing, telling me that he was going to distract me from the storm outside by showing off the muscles that 'had been passed down the Armstrong family for generations'.

"So you're really scared of storms?" Winry asked timidly as she sat down on the edge of my bed. "Why didn't you ever tell us?"

"I didn't want to be a bother you guys with it. I'll get over it sooner or later, no need to worry." I lightly touch the bruise on my head with my index finger. I winced and rested my hand on my chest.

"Allison…" Winry said worriedly. I rolled my eyes and pushed away her hands as she tried to comfort me.

"I'm fine. It's just a stupid phobia and I'll grow out of it. Now go to bed." When nobody showed any sign of moving, I sat upright and flung my arms towards the door. "GET OUT!" I yelled.

Alphonse and Winry hustled quickly out the door, dragging a still-flexing Armstrong behind them. They squeezed past Ed and retreated down the hallway. Edward continued to stand there, staring at the book on the floor.

"What?" I asked as I began to crawl underneath my covers. My eldest brother stooped down and grabbed the book. He walked slowly up to my bed and dropped it next to my pillow.

"Goodnight Sister," Edward whispered. He bent down and gave me an awkward one-arm hug and then left the room, closing the door behind him. I looked at the book next to me. The title was "The Basics of Alchemy".

* * *

"Rise and shine!"

With a groan, I rolled out of my bed. I crawled across the floor and quickly gathered up a pair of clean clothes. I changed, ran a brush through my tangled head of hair, and flung open my door. Standing in the hall was a Pinako.

"Come on, breakfast is ready." Pinako beckoned me towards the stairs. I shuffled along beside her and made my way into the kitchen where big plates of food were already set on eat placemat. Edward was already seated at the table, shoveling food into his mouth quicker than he could swallow. Alphonse stood nearby, staring longingly at the food. I felt a pang of pity in my heart knowing that brother couldn't eat.

"Where's Armstrong?" I asked as I slid into my chair. I yawned loudly and stabbed my eggs with a fork. "Not that I care."

"He's outside. Doing what, I'm not sure," Edward replied. He had cleaned his plate and was now reaching across the table to swipe some of my food. I swatted his hand glared at him.

"Ed…" Pinako said darkly from behind his chair. "You didn't drink your milk." Edward's face twisted into a look of distaste and turned in his chair.

"I hate milk, you know that."

"You'll stay that short forever if you don't drink it."

"Milk has nothing to do with how tall I get! And who are you calling short, you micro-granny?" He pushed his milk across the table towards me. "Here! Allison can drink it." I rolled my eyes and took a gulp of my own milk.

"You're so picky," I muttered. Edward glowered at me from across the table while Pinako continued to bore holes into the back of his head with her eyes. I could tell she was just itching to retaliate and call him a pea-sized midget. Alphonse was shaking his head and chuckling as he took Ed's plate and set it by the sink.

"We should get going, Brother," Alphonse said. Ed nodded and stood up from the table. As he passed me to head towards the stairs, he snagged my breakfast plate and quickly gobbled up half of its contents.

"Hey!" I whined, shoving my brother playfully and retrieving my plate. Edward laughed and ruffled my hair with his hand.

"Just like when we were younger, huh?" Edward commented with a smile. I couldn't help but grin back- probably my first genuine grin in a long time. Edward and Al then went upstairs to get their suitcase, leaving Pinako and I alone in the kitchen. I picked at my food and sipped from both my glass and Ed's glass of milk. Finally, Pinako spoke.

"You're only happy when your brothers are here, aren't you," Pinako said. It wasn't a question. I stared at my eggs and didn't respond. "This is the first time in _years_ that you've actually laughed and smiled without it being forced. You're actually coming downstairs voluntarily. It's all going to change once they get on that train, isn't it?" This time, it was question. I nodded slowly.

"They're my brothers, Granny. I love them more than anything, and I never get to see them. This is the first time I've spoken to them in four years. Who's to say I'll see them again before another four years passes? I can't wait that long." As I finished, my voice cracked. Tears were stinging in my eyes.

"Allison, those boys care about you. Now that they see how much you need to see them, I'm sure they'll make it a priority to visit you more often."

"I doubt it. They're too busy now. Ed's a state alchemist and they're out adventuring and…" I trailed off when I heard Edward come sliding down the railing of the staircase.

"Alright, time to get going! Major!" Edward called as he flung his red jack over his shoulder and strode towards the door. Alphonse was close behind, carrying a big brown suitcase.

Pinako and I followed the two out the door, where they were greeted by Major Armstrong. Den, who had been basking in the sun, sprang up and wove between my legs likes a kitten. I patted the dog's head.

"Well, we're off," Alphonse said, glancing up the path towards the train station.

"Don't be strangers, you two," Pinako said. "And it was nice meeting you, Mr. Armstrong."

"Where's Winry?" Edward asked, glancing around me and Den and into the house. I turned my head, too, surprised the Winry wasn't outside to say goodbye to the boys.

"She's probably still fast asleep. She pulled a couple of all-nighters for your automail, Ed, and last night was a pretty long night." Ed nodded and stared up at the balcony that was attached to Winry's workshop and bedroom. He sighed and turned around, ready to set off to the station.

Emotion hit me square in the chest. My brothers were leaving once again, for God knows how long. Before I knew what I was doing, I sprang into the air and tackled Edward, tears running freely down my cheeks. I buried my face into Ed's back and hugged him.

"I'll miss you, Big Brother," I whispered. "When am I going to see you again?"

"The next time I need repairs," Edward replied, his voice strained as he tried to roll me off of him, "which will probably be soon, since I apparently break my automail a lot." I got off of Ed and flung myself at Al, hitting his armored body with a clang. I knew I was going to be extremely sore from hitting Al with such force, but I didn't care. I didn't even care that he couldn't feel me hugging him. I felt Al's hand on my head and I smiled, pressing my cheek against his cold metal stomach.

"Here," I heard Ed whisper in my ear. I felt him stuff something in my pocket and then pull Alphonse away from me. Ed, Al, and the Major began to walk down the path and I stood there, tears still running down my face, when I heard someone calling Edward's name from the balcony.

"Ed! Ed!" We all turned to see a sleepy Winry leaning against the balcony railing, waving groggily. Ed chuckled, waved a hand, and then continued on his way. Pinako, Winry, and I all stood outside until we could no longer see them and then headed back inside. I immediately scampered up to room and slammed the door shut. Leaning breathlessly against my door, I grabbed whatever Ed had stuffed into my pocket. It was a piece of paper and it was crinkled and worn. I opened it slowly and was met with Edward's awful handwriting.

"One is All, All is One" was scrawled on the top line. Below it, it read "I want you to know _exactly_ what that means by the next time I see you. Only then will I teach you Alchemy."

I stared blankly at the message, and then studied the top line. "One is All, All is One"? What was that supposed to mean? Edward knew I wasn't good at this sort of thing. After thirty minutes of just staring at the message, I turn and punched the wall as hard as I could.

"I hate you Ed. I freaking hate you."

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**Hope you enjoyed the new chapter! Please review :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**(A/N) Well, here's Chapter 6! This is the fist time I've updated so quickly...I hope you like it :D**

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**A Few Months Later**

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"_Edward? Edward?" _

_I'm slogging through a river of thick mud, following my brother's red coat, which is billowing in the strong wind. Suddenly, I trip, and I'm falling face-first into the brown muck. Arms flailing wildly, I search for something to grasp onto. Nothing is within reach, and I am enveloped in the mud. I try to resurface, but I cannot find the bottom of the river to push off from. I reach up with my right arm, and it just barely breaks the surface. I grope for something- anything- and I am rewarded with another hand grabbing mine. I am pulled up onto the riverbank, gasping for breath, covered in mud. _

"_Allison, you have to be more careful," Edward grunts angrily as he wipes mud from my face. "I'm not always going to be here to save you, ya know." He glares at me and then collapses onto the grass with a loud, pent-up sigh. I coughed a bit and looked over at him, waiting for him to continue. _

"_There's something I need to discuss with you," Edward told me, propping himself up on his elbow. "You've been sulking inside for years and barely ever set foot outside." He gave me a long, meaningful look. "I'm guessing that the reason for this is because of Mom, or maybe even because of Al and I, but you can't let Mom's death or our absences weigh you down." _

"_They're not weighing me down," I said with a raspy voice that I barely recognized. I coughed into the bend in my elbow to clear my throat. Edward ignored me and rolled onto his back._

"_You really should go out and see the world," my eldest brother whispered, stretching. "There's all this around you," Edward flailed his arms around, gesturing to everything near us "and you see it every day. There's more out there, Allison. You're just one tiny part of it all." Ed looked over at me and smiled. Then, the ground soaked up Edward like a sponge and left me there, staring at nothing. That's when I felt tears rolling down my cheeks…_

"Allison? Allison, wake up, it's okay. It's just a dream, Allison."

My dream fades away as I'm roughly shaken from my slumber. My eyes snap open to see Winry sitting in the wooden chair next to my bed. I blink at her as I try to clear the sticky web of sleep from my brain.

"Did you have another nightmare?" Winry asks softly. I grumble and rub my eyes tiredly. I'd been having nightmares on and off ever since Edward and Alphonse left Risembool after getting some repairs done. I could tell it was wearing Winry and Granny Pinako down, having to come in my room and shake me awake four or five times a week.

I slowly got out from under my warm covers and slid onto the wooden floor of my bedroom. I tried to straighten the wrinkles on my night gown, but it was no use. I'd been lounging around in this thing for a few weeks and there was no way I'd be able to straighten this gown with just my hands. I muttered a string of nonsense, unable to form any complete words. I was too tired for that.

"You could go back to sleep, if you're that tired. That's pretty much all you've been doing lately, anyway," Winry suggested. I grumbled again and padded over to my dresser. I started pulling out random garments, trying to find something that wasn't wrinkled. After a moment or two, I found a neatly folded white sun dress that Granny had gotten me ages ago. I pulled it out and held it up in front of me by its shoulder straps, letting it unfold. I inspected it and deemed it acceptable. I looked back at Winry, who immediately turned away to let me change in privacy.

"That's a cute dress," Winry commented as I slipped off my night gown. "That's the one Granny bought you, isn't it?"

"Yeah," I mumbled after a large yawn. I pulled the sun dress over my head and over my slim torso. I let go of the dress and watched in a nearby mirror as the bottom hem rested just above my shins. I grabbed a brush off of my dresser and returned to the mirror, where I yanked the brush violently through my tangled locks.

"Hey, careful- you're going to rip your hair out," Winry cautioned. She approached me and took the brush away. She carefully began to brush out the snarls in my hair, trying not to pull too hard. "You really need to brush your hair more often."

"Sure." I closed my eyes and exhaled hard. I began to nod off again and fuzzy pictures of two little boys chasing after a rabbit on an island flickered across my brain.

"Alright, all done," Winry said after successfully pulling out all of the knots in my hair. She then carefully pulled back my hair into a loose side ponytail. I opened my eyes as Winry rested her chin on my shoulder and stared into the mirror. But she wasn't looking at herself, she was looking at me.

"What?" I tried to move away, but Winry held me in place. She had this sad, sympathetic look in her eyes.

"You look just like your mom," she whispered. I looked at my reflection, I mean, I really _looked_. I did not believe that the person looking back at me was actually…_me. _If I had been walking past the mirror and just glanced at it, I would have sworn it was my mother. But it was not her. It was me, Allison, her daughter. Before I could stop myself, I was burying my head into Winry's shoulder. I felt pressure in my eyes, but I refused to let myself cry.

"Let's go downstairs. I bet Granny has breakfast ready," Winry said softly. She grabbed my shoulders and held me away from her at arm's length, taking one long look at me. She smiled, then took one of my hands and dragged me along behind her to the kitchen. We thumped down the stairs and I was just about to complain to Winry to be gentler, when a huge swarm of people erupted from the dining room.

"Happy Birthday, Allison!" they were all shouting. I stumbled backwards in surprise and felt my hand go to my throat.

"What in the _world_…?" I gasped. Winry, still grasping my hand, turned and gave me a big grin.

"Did you really think we'd let your birthday go without a party?" said Pinako from the dining room doorway. I could barely see her short figure through the mob of babbling people before me.

"B-But, you know I didn't want a-" I stammered, trying to retreat back up the stairs. Winry held my hand tight and pulled me back towards her, where she wrapped an arm around me and began conversing with the guests.

"C'mon, Allison, it's your fourteenth birthday. At least try to have fun," Winry said under her breath as she took a break from chatting with a man who lived down the road from us.

"I haven't been around this many people since I was _six_," I hissed back. "This is absolutely_ insane,_ throwing everyone at me all at once." I shuffled into the living quarters and dropped down onto the couch, Winry followed behind, sulking. It was apparent that she thought that I'd be pulled out of my 'depression' by having all of these people crammed into the house for my birthday. She really didn't know me well at all.

"Ah, little Allison!" a man crowed from the living room entryway. "Not so little anymore, I suppose…" The man approached me and reached out to shake my hand. "You may not remember me, but I was a good friend of your mother's. I used to babysit you and your older siblings when you were just this big." The man bent down and held his hand a few feet off the ground. I nodded, trying hard to remember who he was, as I reached out and shook his hand gingerly. "It's a shame about Trisha," the man continued in a murmur. "She was such a wonderful woman. Hard to believe she's been gone for-"

"Steven," Winry growled next to me. "Allison doesn't wish to speak about her mother." I felt that my face had unconsciously twisted to express a look of sorrow. I quickly recomposed myself and forced a smile, which wasn't hard to do, since I'd been faking smiles for years.

"No, it's alright. Most everyone is going to speak of her today, anyway," I said, trying to cover up the true pain in my heart. I missed my mother so much. "And probably my brothers, too," I added in a whisper. The man, who I now knew was named Steven, slinked out of the room, leaving Winry and I alone.

"So he was a friend of my Mom's?" I asked quietly as I settled back into the couch. I stared up at the ceiling unseeingly.

"Yeah, he was a friend of my parent's, too. He was closer to your Mom though. I used to see him all the time when I was real little. It's hard to believe I still remember him. Anyway, he was actually going to propose to your mother, but something went wrong and Steven had to go away to the North. That's when your mother met Hohenheim. Steven's been heartbroken ever since. Still hasn't gotten married…" Winry muttered. She was looking up at the ceiling, too, but I could tell she was actually _looking_, counting all of the cracks.

"Allison, get out here! It's time to eat!" Pinako shouted from the kitchen. I groaned and closed my eyes. Maybe if I ignored her, she'd give up and make everyone go home. But, that wasn't going to work. Winry got up, grabbed my forearm, and dragged me into the crowded dining area where a large assortment of foods were scattered about in mismatching serving bowls and plates. Big pitchers of milk and juice sat in the middle of the table.

"How did you…? What time did you wake up?" I asked Granny in astonishment. There was so much food. It must've taken her hours to make all of it.

"Much too early, so you'd better stop being so grumpy and enjoy your birthday," Granny huffed. She gestured for everyone to try and find a seat. I was immediately ushered to a big chair at the head of the table. It made me feel uncomfortable, being surrounded by so many people I barely remembered. Once everyone had managed to squeeze around the table, people began to pass around the food. I was passed a large bowl of watermelon. I took a big scoop of the fruit and plopped it onto my plate and then handed the bowl to the next person.

"Hey Allison," said the boy who I had passed the watermelon to. "You remember me?"

"Um…" I searched my mind frantically. This boy was about my age with rusty auburn hair. His eyes were a muddy brown and his skin was dark and tan. After a moment or two, I shook my head, not remembering him at all.

"Haha, I thought not. I'm Benjamin. We used to walk to the school house together when we were younger." It suddenly clicked- me, walking on top of a stone wall behind Edward, trying to mimic him, while Benjamin walked on the ground, prepared to catch me if I fell. Alphonse was behind me, helping me along. I smiled at the memory and nodded my head at Benjamin to let him know I remembered now.

"It's good to see you again," I said as I dropped a heaping spoonful of eggs onto my plate. I passed the plate to Benjamin and waited for a response.

"Yeah, I haven't seen you in so long, even though we only live a few miles apart. Well, we used to. It's a little farther away now that you're living here." He handed the plate to the person next to him and turned back to me. "What happened to your house, anyway? It's a just a big pile of charred wood now."

"Well, um…my brothers burned it down before they left for Central," I said, staring down at my food. I grabbed my fork and stabbed some the watermelon and shoved it into my mouth.

"Huh…" Benjamin muttered as he took a bite of his own food. Our conversation stopped there and I was quickly swept into a debate with an older woman next to me.

"State Alchemists? Ha! Load of good they do us out here. And have you _heard_ about what they did during the Ishbal rebellion?" the woman spat as she shoved a bowl of strawberries into my hands.

"No ma'am, I haven't. Erm…what's the Ishbal rebellion?" I asked sheepishly, feeling stupid and clueless. I passed the bowl of strawberries to Benjamin, not bothering to scoop any onto my plate.

"You've never heard of the Ishbal rebellion? Child, have you been living under a rock your whole life? The rebellion was more of a massacre, started when a military officer shot a poor innocent Ishballan child. The Ishballans fought back and the military- mainly the State Alchemists- slaughtered almost the entire Ishballan race." The woman stared angrily into her pile of eggs and muttered under her breath words that I shouldn't repeat. Without another word, I piled the rest of my food into my mouth and stood, not bothering to wait until the rest of the bowls and plates had been passed around. I wasn't that hungry anyway.

"Granny, I'll be in Winry's workshop," I whispered in Pinako's ear as I passed her. I flew up the stair, past all of the bedrooms, and locked myself in Winry's shop. Surrounded by all of the metal limbs, I dropped to the floor and took a deep breath. I felt my heartbeat and breathing slow. Being around all of those people made me so nervous. I stretched out on the wooden floor and picked up a scrap of metal nearby to examine it. Attached to the corner was a note that read "_New model- Edward. Don't Touch"_. I quickly dropped the metal and scooted away from it. I'd made the mistake of touching new automail models before and it had ended with me, unconscious, a lump the size of a walnut on my forehead. Winry and her wrenches…

Suddenly, the phone began to ring. I sprang to my feet and strolled over, where I hesitantly stared at it. This was Winry's work phone. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to answer it. I shrugged and snatched it up.

"Rockbell Automail, this is Allison speaking," I said, twirling the phone cord with my finger. There wasn't an immediate answer, but after a few silent seconds, a very familiar voice began to speak.

"Oh Allison, thank God," Edward sighed on the other end. I chuckled and sat down in the chair that was pulled up next to Winry's work desk.

"What happened now?" I asked. I casually kicked my feet up onto Winry's desk, accidently knocking off an automail leg that I assumed was for Den.

"Um, my automail needs a bit of repair, but I'm unable to get to Risembool right now. Do you think you and Winry could come to Central and fix me up?" Edward sounded desperate. He really needed us to go to Central- there were no other options.

"Yeah sure, I bet Winry wouldn't mind- wait, did you say me, too? Why me?"

"Well, you got my note, didn't you? It's been a decent amount of time and I'm sure you've figured out what my message means, right?"

_Crap!_ I screamed mentally. I still hadn't been able to deduce what "One is All, All is One" meant. I was screwed. I had a _day_ to figure it out now, because I knew Edward wasn't making it an option for me to go to Central with Winry- it was an order.

"Heh heh, yeah, sure Edward, I figured it out a few weeks ago," I lied. I stopped twirling the phone cord and let my feet slide off of the desk.

"Good," Edward said, unable to detect my lie. "I'll see you later then."

"Yup, see you later." As I was about to hang up the phone, I heard Edward scream, "_Wait!_" I brought the phone back to my ear in confusion. "What?"

"Jeez, I can't believe I almost forgot- Happy Birthday, baby sister," Edward sighed.

"I'm not a baby," I grumbled. Edward laughed loudly on the other line and sighed again.

"I bet Pinako and Winry are throwing you a party, huh?"

"Much to my dismay…" Edward laughed again.

"Well, I'll let you get back to being hounded by the neighbors. Bye!" I heard the disconnection tone before I could respond and dropped the phone back on its hook. I leaned against the back of my chair just as a loud knock came from the door. I stood, unlocked it, and threw it open.

"It's time to unwrap gifts, Miss Allison!" a little boy said excitedly. He was jumping up and down as he grabbed my hand and tried with all his might to drag me from Winry's workshop. "C'mon, Miss Allison! Don'tchu wanna see what everyone bought ya?" I sighed and removed the boy's hand from mine. I followed him down the stairs and into the living quarters where the coffee table was piled high was brightly wrapped gifts. I reluctantly sat down between Winry and Pinako on the couch and waited while people swarmed around the table. I plucked a gift from the top of the pile. It was small and wrapped in yellow foil. _To Allison Marie_ was written on top in black ink. I tore open the gift, trying to seem excited like any other kid would be, but it was difficult to fake an emotion like that. I tossed the foil to the side and examined the gift.

"It's so cute," I gasped, turning the soft, handmade doll around in my hands. It really was adorable, even though I was too old for dolls. "May I ask who it's from?" I looked up at the sea of faces before me and I noticed a hand go up towards the back of the room. The people parted and a middle-aged woman walked forward, her hand still partially raised.

"Oh, I'm so glad you like it," she said, a look of relief on her face. "I was afraid it was too young for you, but it's the only thing I'm good at doing, you see. So I made that little doll." I smiled and said a quick thank you before handing the gift to Winry, who set it on the floor beside her. The guests all flocked back to the table as I continued taking gifts one by one from the pile. Most of the gifts consisted of dresses, books, and shoes (even though I prefer going barefoot). I nodded thanks after every gift, even though I didn't know half of the people I was receiving them from.

I was nearing the last few presents when someone tapped my shoulder. I looked over curiously, a half-unwrapped gift sitting in my lap. It was a little girl with big hazel eyes and red hair pulled up into two pigtails. She was holding out one of her hands and in between her tiny fingers was a daffodil.

"I found 'dis outside while I was playing," she said. She looked out the living room window and I looked, too, and noticed most of the younger children outside, chasing poor Den around the yard. The girl looked back at me and smiled shyly. "I di'nt have a gift, so I picked 'dis for you instead." Her smile suddenly grew into a large grin that took up half of her face. "I hope you like it!" She dropped the flower on my lap and ran from the room. I faintly heard the front door open and slam shut as she went back outside to play.

"That's so cute!" Winry squealed next to me. Various guests echoed Winry with squeals of their own as I gingerly picked up the flower by its stem and tucked it behind my ear. I felt my lips turn up into the faintest of smiles as I picked up the unwrapped gift resting on my thigh.

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"Thanks for coming everyone!" Winry called out the door as the guests left the house to return to their own homes. She closed the door and beamed at me. "Well, that wasn't that bad, was it?"

"I guess not," I mumbled through a mouthful of homemade fudge Granny had given to me as my birthday present. At the same time, I was trying to slide on a pair of boots that I had received from a woman who lived near the train station named Grace. As I finally got my feet into the sleek black boots, I stood and shook out my legs. I wasn't really used to shoes, seeing as I hadn't really worn them before. I paced around the living room and into the dining room, around the table, up the stairs, through Winry's workshop, and back down into the living room.

"You like the boots? I know Grace worked hard to find you a good, teenage gift," Pinako said from the kitchen, where she was working diligently to preserve as many leftovers as possible. I poked my head out of the living room entryway and nodded, stuffing another piece of fudge in my mouth. As I was about to return to the couch and take off my boots, Granny motioned for me to come into the kitchen.

"What?" I asked as I clomped across the linoleum floor.

"You have a few more gifts upstairs in your room. Winry put them up there while we were eating. Go take your other presents upstairs and unwrap those other ones, alright?" I nodded, slightly confused. I turned and went back into the living room where I swiped up all of my gifts in one big load that towered above my head. I staggered to the stairs and tripped my way up to my bedroom.

I shouldered my bedroom door open and dropped my arm fulls of gifts onto my bed next to three presents that were wrapped poorly in newspaper. I dropped to the floor, pulling the parcels down with me. I stared at them a moment, and then ripped open the smallest one first. Before I could get a good look at the item concealed under the newspaper, a piece of paper caught my eye. I grabbed it between my thumb and index finger and read it silently to myself.

_Sorry this is so poorly wrapped and that I didn't give it to you at your official party. We ran out of wrapping paper and I thought you'd want to open these in private. This is from me, and I hope you like it. Edward and Al made it for me on my birthday when I was younger. Happy Birthday! –Winry_

I glanced over the note to stare at the present laying on the floor. It was a doll with brown hair and a purple dress. My brothers had made this? I set down the note and took the doll in my hands to study it closely. It looked slightly tattered, proving that it was indeed older and made when Winry was younger. I set the doll aside and took the next gift in my hands. I noticed yet another note sticking out from a flap of the newspaper. This note was similar to the previous one, only this one said it was from Edward and Alphonse (_Most likely from Alphonse, because we all know Edward_, Winry had wrote). I unwrapped the gift to find a book titled 'The Basics of Alchemy'. It looked exactly like the Alchemy book I had on my shelf, but after opening the cover, I noticed a smile note scrawled in dark blue ink. I recognized it as Alphonse's handwriting

_I thought you'd like a better copy then the one I saw laying on the floor in your room. This one is also more up-to-date, so that will be helpful when Brother starts teaching you. Happy Birthday, Sister. –Alphonse._

I felt my face light up. An updated version? I skimmed through the pages excitedly, feeling something unfamiliar building in my chest. I couldn't wait until Edward started teaching me. But then, everything crashed down when I realized that I had yet to figure out what Edward's note meant. I tossed the book aside, my excitement extinguished, and grabbed the last gift in front of me. Another note peeked out and it also was the same as the previous ones, but the sender was different. This one was from my father.

I swatted the gift away as if it were poisonous. I scrambled backwards like a crab and pressed myself against the far wall of my bedroom. _From my father?_ My mind squeaked. _Impossible! _ I barely remembered my father. He had left when I was young and I only remembered what he looked like from the few pictures Pinako had on her bulletin board. He had never written me- or anyone else, for that matter- and I had assumed he was dead. But now, a gift from him sat on the other side of the room. How had he sent it here? Where could he be? I gulped and started crawling towards the gift as slowly as possible.

Halfway across the room, something in my gut twisted and my brain started screaming at me. _You're so stupid! It's just a gift! It's not like it's going to jump up and bite your nose off. Just get up and open it, you scaredy cat! _I stopped crawling for a minute and just stared at the floor blankly. After a moment or two, I made a 'pffft' noise and rolled my eyes. I stood and closed the remainder of space between me and present with two strides. I swiped it off the floor and tore the newspaper off with a few quick motions of my hands to reveal a plain brown box. I flicked the box flaps open and peeked inside to find something that was far too tiny for such a big box- a necklace. I took the accessory in one of my hands and discarded the box with the other. I studied the necklace closely and found that a scrap of paper was wrapped around the stone attached to the silver chain. I peeled the paper away from it and read the few words printed on it- _To my girl_. I 'harrumphed' and rolled up the tiny scrap between two of my fingers. I then flicked it across the room and returned to examining my necklace. Attached to the sliver chain was a small, dark red stone. It was a beautiful gift, but I was skeptical. Why had my father sent me this?

"Knock knock," I heard someone say from behind me. I spun around and quickly hid the necklace behind my back. Winry's head was poking out from around my door and a pleasant smile was plastered on her face.

"Hello Winry," I said quietly, trying to sound relaxed. "Can I help you?" Winry took that as permission to enter my room and stepped inside, shutting the door behind her with a soft click. She strode over to my bed and noticed all of the newspaper scattered around the edge of it. She then spotted the Alchemy book and the doll. She smiled at me and sat down at the foot of my bed.

"I see you've opened the special gifts. Do you like them?" She looked hopeful as she bent down and scooped up the doll she had given me. She brushed off some dust from the small dress and glanced up at me.

"Of course I do. The doll is cute and the Alchemy book is really going to come in handy." As I said this, I shuffled over to my dresser and indiscreetly dropped my father's present into an open drawer.

"I'm glad to hear. What about the gift your father sent you? It really surprised me to see a package from him in the mail…" Winry trailed off as she caught sight of me trying and close my dresser drawer without seeming suspicious. She raised an eyebrow and opened her mouth to continue.

"Edward called," I said quickly before she could say anything more. "Apparently his automail broke again and he needs us to go to Central to fix him up." Her face suddenly fell and she stared laughing nervously. She rubbed the back of her neck and refused to look me in the eye.

"Okay, I'll get on train tomorrow morning and fix him up, free of charge, heh heh heh." Now it was my turn to raise an eyebrow.

"Winry…?"

"Okay, so maybe I screwed up and forgot a bolt!" Winry exploded, jumping to her feet. "It's just one mistake! Just one!" Then, before I could even fix my face into a bewildered expression, she dropped back down onto the bed with her head in her hands. "After all these years…I _forgot a bolt_. How stupid of me…" I went up to Winry and patted her head, trying to console her.

"It's alright. I'm sure Edward will understand. But, I have to come with you, Win. Ed needs to see me." Winry lifted her head and straightened up, putting a pleasant look back on her face.

"Alright," she said with a nod. I smiled and plopped down next to her on my bed. She glanced at me out of the corner of her eye before bolting to her feet and racing across my room to my dresser, where she began to tear through my dresser drawers.

"Hey! What are you doing?" I cried as I sprinted across the wooden floor and grabbed Winry around the waist. I tried to pull her back, but she was determined.

"Where's that present? I saw you hiding it Allison!" She flung open another drawer and ransacked it. Clothes were now gathering in huge piles around our feet as I tried desperately to pull her back.

"It's my present, Winry! Don't go snooping!" I planted my feet and yanked back as hard as I could. Winry didn't even budge.

"C'mon! Is it really that big of a deal?" She tossed a handful of underwear over her shoulder and they smacked right into my face. I shook them off and glared at the back of her blonde head. I heaved again, and I felt her slid back an inch.

"Winry!" I whined in the most little-girlish way possible. Another fistful of undergarments blocked my vision and I growled as I removed them. Winry was onto her next drawer- the drawer where I had hid the necklace. She grabbed a handful of shirts and tossed them to the side. Another handful, then another, and then another. I released her waist, knowing that there was no way I'd be getting her away before she found it. A shirt landed on my head and I felt something hard slide down the back of my dress and fall by my feet. I looked down to see my necklace, laying there unnoticed. I stooped down and grabbed it, a silent sigh of relief sliding between my lips. Winry must have grabbed it in a handful of clothes and it just so happen to be inside of the shirt that landed on my head. Speaking of which…I yanked the shirt off my head and balled it up. I tossed it at Winry's back and smiled with satisfactory as she questionably glanced over her shoulder at me. She noticed my smile, and then realized that I had the gift and that she had thrown it while frantically searching for it. She glared at me and the pounced.

"SHOW ME!" she shouted as she reached outwards, ready to tackle me. I darted to my door and flung it open. I made my way down the stairs and through the first floor, Winry hot on my tail. I managed to catch Pinako staring at us in bewilderment before I crashed through the front door and took off running down the path and towards my old house.

After a minute of running, I tossed a glance over my shoulder to see Winry standing on her balcony, shaking her fist at me. But I could see that she was laughing, and I couldn't help but let laughter bubble from me, too. I then stumbled to a halt and looked around me. I was outside and I was _laughing_. I felt my eyes grow wide. This was the first time I'd been this far away from Granny Pinako's house in four years. I took a shaky breath and shook my head sharply before taking a few steps forward. Now that I was out here, I might as well go see my house. And Mom.

As I approached the scorched remains of my old house, I remembered the necklace clutched tightly in my hand. I opened my fist and, without really thinking, brought the chain around my neck and clasped it. I felt the cold stone rest just above the neckline of my dress. I then began to scan the grass around me. It had grown and was no longer burnt. I stepped forward and felt my bare feet hit the crisp, black wood that used to be a house. The wood poked my soft skin and leave harsh splinters, but I didn't feel any pain. I just continued strolling across the remains, mentally noting where each room used to be.

_And this was the living room. I remember sitting by the fire with Mom while she read stories. This was the kitchen…Mom always made the best stew…The guest bedroom, Edward and Al's room, the staircase…_ My thoughts where no longer coherent. Tears began to stream down my cheeks and I broke into a run again. I could now feel the ragged splinters in my flesh and I just wanted to get away. I ran blindly, tears blurring my vision.

I ran and ran until, breathless, I collapsed to my knees. After I had caught my breath, I looked up to find myself at the gate to a cemetery. I blinked hard a few times and got to my feet. I walked forward robotically, unsure of what I was doing, and found myself in front of my mother's grave. I stared down at it for a moment before I felt my lips twitch up into a small, gentle smile.

"Hi Mom," I whispered. I knelt down to pull a weed away from the corner of the tombstone. "I'm sorry I haven't come to visit lately." There was a small flower wreath resting on top of the grave. Edward probably made it and put it there when he was here last. I wish I knew how to make one of those…

"It's my birthday today," I said, sitting cross-legged in the grass. "Dad sent me a necklace. It's really nice…" I tugged on chain around my neck and sighed heavily. I reached out and rested a hand on the front of the tombstone, my hand covering up the word 'Trisha'. "I really wish you were here…"

A soft breeze rustled the trees around me and made goose bumps rise on my arms. I looked up at the sky, hoping to calculate what time it was by the position of the sun. The sky was turning orange and red as the sun set. I frowned, knowing the Pinako would want me home for dinner soon. I leaned forward and rested my forehead on the cool gray stone just above my hand.

"I love you, Mom." I felt a few tears escape the corners of my eyes as I closed them. A wave of exhaustion suddenly swept over me and I slumped forward, my face sliding painfully down the ragged stone and resting in the dirt and grass. I curled up and tried to keep warm as the cool evening breeze picked up. I took a few shaky breaths before I was pulled under into a deep, deep sleep.

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**(A/N) I really didn't know how to end this one, but I hope it's okay...Please review :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**(A/N)- Wow! It sure has been a while! I'm so sorry for the delay. I've just been in a state of writer's block PLUS I'm moving, so I've been super busy. This chapter is shorter due to how I want to set up Chapter 8, so please forgive me!**

* * *

"I _cannot_ see how Ed and Al can ride these all the time!"

"Winry, I know. You've said that about fifty times already, now grab the luggage and get off of the train." A massive yawn escaped me and I had to drop my suitcases on the ground so I could stretch my arms up to the sky. I rubbed my eyes and blinked hard a few times. I had slept the entire ride to Central, but I was still tired. Sleeping in the cemetery the other night hadn't been the smartest thing, I suppose.

"Ed called before we left. He said there would be someone here to get us. Someone we'd recognize…" Winry stood on her tiptoes and scanned the crowd in front of us. She had her bags slung over her shoulder and some of the zippers were strained due to her trying to cram as many articles of clothing into the bags as possible.

"Win, I think I see—" I began as I spotted a large man in a military suit standing in the center of the crowd. It was pretty hard not to notice him and I was surprised Winry hadn't seen him yet. But, I was quickly cut off as the man spotted us and raised a hand to wave us over.

"Ah, Winry and Allison, so nice to see you again!" the man bellowed. I looked over at Winry from the corner of my eye and I could just barely see a small vein begin to pulse in her forehead from annoyance.

"Of course…Edward had to send _him_," she muttered under her breath as I swept up my luggage and began to haul them over to none other than Major Alex Louis Armstrong. I could sense Winry close behind.

"Hello Mr. Armstrong," I tried to say as brightly as possible. The man politely took some of my heavier bags, including Winry's mechanics kit. I lugged what was left of my suitcases to his car and tossed them in the backseat before sliding in after them. Winry tossed her bags back with me and then reluctantly crawled into the front seat due to there being no more room in the back.

As Armstrong started the car, I rested my head against the cold window and stared out at the passing people. I let my mind wonder, and my dream from a few nights ago crept up on me- the dream where Edward had saved me from drowning in a river of mud. I could barely recall most of it, but I did remember Edward telling me to get out and see the world, that I'm only a small part of it all and there's so much more around me. Those words swirled around in my brain and soon the words started to blend together and the only words I could make out were 'small part of it all'. The words were meaningless to me, though and, with a sigh, I slouched in my seat and dug my hands into the pockets of my skirt. My hand touched a wrinkled piece of paper and I pulled it out slowly, unable to recall putting something in my pockets. I unfolded the slip and read the words scrawled on it.

"_One is All, All is One."_

This must have been the skirt I was wearing when Ed slipped the paper into my pocket and I had never removed it. Then, my heart plummeted to my feet as I realized I still didn't know what the phrase meant.

In the back of my mind, something tried to break through and make itself known. It was screaming "C'mon, you're smart! Think! It's so obvious!" I struggled to sort out my thoughts but I was rudely interrupted by Major Armstrong, who was babbling rather loudly to Winry about some nonsense I didn't care to understand. I blocked him out and stared intently at the wrinkled slip of paper clenched in my hands.

_You're just a small part of it all. If you died, the world would continue on as if nothing happened. You're insignificant, tiny, like an ant. You've stepped on ants before and the world didn't explode. People die every single day. Nothing changes. You're a small part of it-_

"I got it!" I shrieked, causing Winry to jump and Armstrong to hit the brakes instinctively. I lurched forward and slammed my head on the back of Armstrong's seat as the car jolted to a stop.

"What the heck?" Winry spun around and glared at me, a red mark forming on her forehead when she had hit the dashboard. "You don't just scream when someone's driving!"

"Sorry, sorry," I muttered, turning away sheepishly.

"It's alright, Allison," Armstrong boomed from in front of me as he tapped the gas pedal and began driving down the road again. "You just startled me a bit, no harm done."

I rested my head against the window again and watched the houses go by. I felt a smile on my face, content that I had finally figured out the little riddle Edward had given me. I let my eyes flutter close and I felt myself begin to doze off when the car once again came to a stop. I cracked my eyes open to find that we were parked in front of Central Hospital.

"Wha…?" I asked groggily as I slowly opened the car door. "Why are we at the hospital?" Winry jogged around the car and held out a hand to help me stand up. I yawned as she hauled me to my feet. She reached around me into the back seat and grabbed her mechanics kit before grabbing my hand again and dragging me into the hospital behind her.

"Edward Elric's room, please," Winry said to the receptionist in the lobby in a rushed voice. The lady nodded and told us the room number. Winry wasted no time and began to jog down the hall and up staircases with me loping along behind her trying not to trip and fall on my face. Suddenly, Winry stopped, turned, and pushed open a door with extreme force. The door flew open and hit the wall with a loud bang, making everyone in the hall and in the hospital room jump.

"Why didn't you tell me you were in the hospital?" Winry yelled, grabbing a wrench from her bag and throwing it across the room at him. The wrench connected with his head and he slumped into his pillow, unconscious. Within moments, though, Ed snapped upright and began to flail around angrily.

"What the heck, Winry, I'm in a hospital! Quit throwing your wrenches around!"

"Be careful, Mr. Elric, you're going to open up your wounds again," warned a female military officer who had appeared suddenly when Winry had stormed into the room. Edward settled back into his pillows but continued to glare at Winry as she walked up to his bed, lugging me and her equipment with her.

"Hello, big brother," I said quietly. I had yet to get a good look at him, slightly terrified as to what I might see. Instead, I fixed my gaze on the floor, pretending to take sudden interest in a piece of lint.

"Oh, hey Allison. Did you figure it out?" I reluctantly glanced up at Ed to see him smiling. I also saw all of the bandages wrapped around him and I flinched. I blinked and stared right into his eyes.

"Yes, I did." I said emotionlessly.

"Wait, figure out what? Have you been keeping something from me, Allison?" Winry demanded. I paid her no mind, though, and continued to stare at Edward silently.

"Well, out with it then!" Edward cried, looking slightly excited.

"I am one. The world is all." I blinked and Edward's smile seemed to broaden. After a moment of absolute silence, Edward stuck out his hand.

"Congratulations, baby sister." I gaped at him and hesitantly took his hand. Just as I was about to shake it, Edward yanked hard on my arm and pulled me into a hug. "I can start teaching you now."

"R-Really?" I stammered. Edward nodded against me and I had no choice but to smile and let myself feel excited, no matter how uncharacteristic it was of me. I pulled away from Edward, beaming proudly.

"I need to tell Alphonse! Where is he, anyway?"

"I'm right here, Sister." I spun around to see Al slumped over in the corner of the room. His posture told me that he really wasn't in a good mood, but I still ran up to him grabbed his metal hands.

"I'm going to learn Alchemy now, Brother! I didn't want to learn when I was younger, b-but now I get to," I rambled staring into the empty holes where his eyes should be. "I can be like you and Ed, and maybe I can help you guys get your bodies ba-"

"Allison, I know. Now can you let go of me?" Alphonse said, a bit of uncharacteristic annoyance creeping into his voice. I pulled away, slightly hurt, and gave Alphonse a puzzled look.

"What's gotten into you, Al?"

"Nothing, I just don't need you practically sitting on top of me," Alphonse muttered before turning towards the wall, telling me that our conversation was over. I backed away and returned to my eldest brother's bedside where I watched silently as Winry lied through her teeth about forgetting a bolt. Just as Edward opened his mouth to question her, the door flew open and an officer paraded in, his hand in the air in greeting.

"Yo, Edward!" the man said loudly.

"Hey Lieutenant Colonel Hughes," Edward said, looking a little peeved.

"So I heard you've got some women in your room, huh?" the Lieutenant Colonel said, sounding excited.

"No, it's not like that! She's my mechanic! And the other one is my _sister_!" Edward said quickly, springing upright.

"Oh, uh…so you're getting it on with your mechanic while your sister watches? Not bad, I guess."

"No! It's not like that!" Edward cried loudly. Hughes laughed heartily as Ed flailed around a bit in agitation.

"Well, anyway, I just came here to check something…" Hughes said mischievously. He turned slowly to face Winry and me, who were standing next to each other in bewilderment. "I was wondering if either of you had a place to stay tonight."

"Eh, um…no, not yet, but we're—" Winry began.

"Oh, then you can com stay with me and my wife and our daughter, Elysia!" Hughes said giddily, pulling out a picture of his family from the pocket of his uniform jacket. "We'd absolutely love to have you, plus it's Elysia's birthday!"

"B-but—" Winry stammered. But it was no use. The man grabbed Winry and I by our shoulders and began to haul us mercilessly out the door and down the hallway like a kidnapper. Winry didn't really struggle, but she stuck her arm out in hopes someone would grab her and save her. I didn't really react, glad that I had somewhere to stay and that Winry and I didn't have to spend our money on a hotel. I was also still too deep in thought over Alphonse acting so out of character that I didn't really bother to attempt escaping his grasp.

* * *

"Um, Mr. Hughes…don't you think that bear is a bit too big…?" Winry asked, eying the huge stuffed bear Hughes was carrying. He had taken us shopping for gifts for his daughter's birthday and now all three of us were carrying a big load of present. Hughes had the bear and a birthday cake, Winry had a large bag full of miscellaneous gifts, and I was carrying a bag full of party supplies and a bundle of helium balloons that was constantly threatening to escape my hands and float off into the sky. All of this reminded me of my birthday, which caused me to glance down at the red necklace from my father that was still clasped tightly around my neck. I still didn't understand why I was still wearing this thing…

"And here we are! Welcome to my humble abode!" Hughes cried happily as we walked up the steps to his brick house. We had just made it to the top step when the door opened to reveal a beautiful woman with short brown hair. She was clothed in a long pastel-colored dress and a soft yellow apron, which was covered in flour. She pecked her husband's cheek and ushered us in, where Maes introduced us enthusiastically.

"This is my wonderful, gorgeous wife, Gracia! Gracia, this is Winry, Edward and Alphonse's friend, and Allison, their younger sister."

"It's so nice to have you two here," Gracia said, her voice soft and kind. "Please, follow me and I'll show you to your room. Oh, and you can just set those shopping bags over here." Gracia gestured to a table off to the side. We set down the bags and then followed her through the house to the guest bedroom. Winry and I set down our bags of clothes and then collapsed on our beds, exhausted.

"It's nice of them to let us stay here," I said quietly as the relieving feeling of finally getting off of my feet swept through my body. "They seem so nice."

"Yes, they do seem nice. But I'd like to meet that daughter of theirs that Mr. Hughes is so enthusiastic about," Winry commented, her voice sounding as if she were dozing off.

"Yeah, I'd like to, as well. Apparently she's turning three," I replied through a massive yawn. "Mr. Hughes told us that how many times? Seven?"

"Eight," Winry corrected. It was silent for a while and right when I thought Winry had fallen asleep, she shot straight up in bed.

"Oh my gosh, I'm a dummy!" she shouted. I turned my head towards her slowly, not in the mood to move. Her face was bright red and she seemed angry and embarrassed at the same time.

"What is it?" I grunted.

"It's Ed's birthday, too! How could I have forgotten! I'm such a dummy!" Winry put her face in her hands and groaned. "I bet he thinks I don't care about him!"

"Win, c'mon…I don't think Ed really cares if you remember or not…" I yawned again and turned my head back to stare at the ceiling.

"Well, I care! I'm such an idiot!"

"Calm down. If it makes you feel better, I forgot, too." Sure, it was a little white lie. I knew it was his birthday, but I never found the time to wish him a happy birthday due to the excitement of finding that Ed would be teaching me Alchemy, Al acting so strange, and Hughes dragging us off. I'd just tell him tomorrow, I guess…

"Really? But you're his sister!" Winry said, disbelieving. I nodded and turned on my side, facing away from Winry. She continued to babble a bit about being an idiot and then somehow strayed on to the topic of automail, which I tuned out. I caught some words, such as 'bolt' and 'screwdriver' and 'latest design', but I just dozed a bit, wanting to catch up on the sleep I lost from sleeping in awkward places like in the cemetery and in Major Armstrong's car. It wasn't too long before I was out like a light.

* * *

_There's blood everywhere—on the walls, on the ceiling, on the floor, even on me. I look down at my hands, which are clean, too keep myself from throwing up. I'm don't handle blood well. I have no idea where all of this blood came from, or even if it's human or not, but it's making me sick to my stomach. There's too much of it and the smell is over powering. It's almost as if I can taste it…_

"_Hey! What are you doing here?" I spin around and droplets of blood fly from my hair and off of my clothes. I stare in shock at the men in the doorway. They're looking at me the same way I'm looking at them, only their expressions are wilder. _

"_I-I-I just—" I sputter._

"_Oh-Oh my God, look. Her-Her necklace is—Run! Run!" I look down and stare at the red necklace my father gave me. It's shining oddly and my eyes grow wider. Then, pain shoots through my body and it feels as if I'm going to explode into a million pieces. I try to scream, ask the men to get help, but they've already run away. Then, I hear their screams down the hallway, screams that should be mine, and my body seems to tear apart. The men's screams are silenced, and I'm able to scream once again. But there is no need for me to scream, since my body is no longer in pain. I glance around, terrified and confused, and then dash out of the room. Down the hall I see a darker area. Thinking it's the shadows of the men running, I take off, calling for them, my voice echoing loudly down the hall. Suddenly, there is a splash beneath my foot. Liquid sprays up onto my calf. At first, I think it is water, but the viscosity of it is different. I run my fingers through the liquid and bring it to my nose. One sniff and I'm retching on my knees. But this doesn't help, because I'm surrounded by the stench, just like in that room. Blood everywhere and I know whose it is this time. It's those two men who ran. I killed them. I killed them with the stone around my neck._

* * *

"Allison! Allison, wake up!" I sit straight up in bed, my entire body covered in a thin sheen of sweat and my heart racing as if I'd just run a marathon. My throat is raw and I can feel that I've been crying.

"Winry…" I gasp, looking up at her from the bed. She is looming over me, a look of worry on her face. She's in a new dress and her hair is up and styled. It must be time for Elysia's party.

"Are you alright? You were screaming and I couldn't get you to wake up, no matter how hard I shook you. It was scaring the living daylights out of Elysia…" Winry touched my forehead and pulled it away quickly. "Your forehead is on fire! Do you feel well?"

"I-I feel fine, Win…Just a bit shaky is all…" I blinked and instantly felt tears well up in my eyes. "Win…I-I never want to sleep again," I whispered, my voice trembling. "Never again." I then flung myself out of the bed and took off. I ran out of the room and down the stairs to the front door, where I escaped with Mr. and Mrs. Hughes questioning gazes behind me.

* * *

"Is she alright, Winry? I mean, she just ran away…" Mrs. Hughes said quietly to Winry, confusion in her voice.

"Yes, she's fine. She just has a lot of bad dreams. I guess this one scared her a little too much and she couldn't take it…" Winry sighed and rested her elbows on the table and her head in her hands. She just didn't understand why Allison had to make such a show out of it. Winry had her fair share of nightmares, but she never went running off.

"Do you think she'll make it back for Elysia's party?" Mr. Hughes asked, glancing at his little daughter who was playing with her dolls on the floor.

"I'm not sure. It all depends on if she's ready to come back by the time the party starts."

"I don't want her to come back," Elysia said in her cute high-pitched voice as she set a little baby into the crib in her doll house. "She scares me."

"Oh, Elysia, you don't mean that!" Mrs. Hughes said quickly.

"I do, Momma. She screams and it scares me. I don't want her to come back." Elysia looked up at her mother with her wide, innocent eyes. Her father stared at her with a look of confusion before sighing and patting her head.

"Allison doesn't mean to scare you, Honey," he reassured. Elysia shrugged and went back to her dolls without saying another word.

"Anyway," Winry said awkwardly, casting sideways glances at Elysia, "don't worry about her. She'll be back before dark, at least." Right then, there was the loud ding of a doorbell.

"Oh! That must be the guests!" Mrs. Hughes said excitedly as she stood. She then rushed to the door and pulled it open. Mr. Hughes picked up Elysia and brought her to the door to show her off. Winry sat at the table, staring at her hands in her lap.

_Allison…You'd better come back._

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**(A/N) Thank you for reading! Again, I apologize for this chapter being shorter than the others. I promise to hurry with the next chapter and make it longer! Please review :)**


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